


The Stories untold

by MaroonDragon



Category: Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (2012), Thor (2011)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-08-26
Updated: 2013-10-08
Packaged: 2017-11-12 22:29:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 39
Words: 78,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/496343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaroonDragon/pseuds/MaroonDragon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It is a surprise for Tony when Loki appears at his house two years after the battle. Slowly he pieces together what happened to the Aesir that made him so jaded. Tony/Loki eventually. (mentionings of rape)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. An apology made

**Author's Note:**

> AN I just recently saw the move The Avengers and I could not help myself….I reaaaaaaallly wanted to write a story with Tony Stark….and then I found the ship of Loki and him (seriously watch this: http ://www. Youtube .com/ watch? v=3nkb3bBeQlk) and well this popped up in my head. I still need a beta for it so please try to ignore the spelling mistakes.  
> Disclaimer: I own nothing!

Tony Stark was not in a good mood. No, scratch that: he was in an epically bad mood. His day had started of crappy enough with a heavy thunderstorm, then proceeded to ruin one of his favorite suits by getting coffee on it and to top it off he had a meeting with the rest of the Avengers. Normally a meeting with the team of misfits didn't have him in such a dark mood. They were fun people in general and he liked them well enough, but the news he had received during the meeting had been bad to say the least. Thor had joined them to inform them of his brother's release. Two years after the whole "let's take over the earth" episode and Loki was already free to go. It pissed Tony off. If they had kept him on earth he wouldn't have gotten off so easy.

Shrugging off his jacket he went straight for the alcohol. He needed it today. He didn't even have Pepper to get him in a better mood. No, she had left six months ago and didn't come back after that. While they had been great friends, lovers and co-workers she had needed something more, a family. While Tony claimed to be many things; a family man wasn't one of them. Pepper was great, but he would not stop being Iron Man and she did not want a father that was constantly putting himself at risk. That was a part of his life she would never truly understand, but it was too big a part of him to let go of for her.

"Jarvis, give me the weather report for tonight. I want to know if I can actually go flying tonight." He told his AI. Technically he could go flying in every type of weather, but he hated thunderstorms. "You are advised to stay indoors sir; hard winds and a thunderstorm are to hit the city in the next twenty minutes." The computer answered him. He poured another glass of whiskey after that. It was going to be a long night. Crashing on the couch with the bottle he turned on the TV with the clear intention of getting plastered and watching crappy shows. He only was able to have one more glass before Jarvis interrupted his mindless actions.

"Sir, there is unusual activity on the terrace. There seems to be some kind of unknown energy field." The AI warned him. He was immediately on alert. Energy fields and unknown activity often meant something that did not come from earth. He was preparing to call Dummy when he saw a flash of black and green.

"Jarvis give me the camera images of the roof." He commanded and watched the images come to life on the screen. He was right; Loki had come to his tower once again. The man was however nothing like how he had left the building two years ago. Instead of the stately person he had been then, he now seemed to be leaning heavily on his scepter and stumbling slightly on the wet ground outside. The man looked utterly broken. While it seemed a bit much to go greet the god as Iron Man, he did not feel the need to go without any form of protection. He put on the bracelets to attach Dummy and made sure that Jarvis knew he could intervene in any way necessary should the dark haired man become a threat. With that being done he opened the door to the terrace where said man had just raised his hand to knock.

"Well, well. If it isn't the God of Mischief. Come to try and take over the earth once again?" He leaned against the doorpost.

"I come in peace Midgardian. I have come a long way for this, so would you mind if we took this conversation inside?" Face to face the man looked even more haggard than the video images had shown. There truly seemed no more strength left in the god.

"Be my guest." He told the soaking wet Loki as he made a grant gesture with his arm, stepping out of his way. It probably was a stupid idea to let him in, but Tony could not quite ignore the prospect of finally something interesting going on.

"Thank you." The other man mumbled as he passed the smaller of the two.

"Want a drink?" He held up the tumbler with his favorite amber liquid.

"I will have to decline." The god of lies was standing awkwardly in the middle of the room, tensing whenever the rumbling sound of thunder came.

"No offence man, but you look like shit. What did you do? Piss someone off in that lovely prison of yours?"

"I'm afraid that two years of torture will have effects on even a god. Believe me Mr. Stark when I say that the gods are quite creative when it comes to torture. We have had ages to perfect it." Loki replied, trying to make it sound like a daily occurrence. Tony was silent for a moment. He himself had been at the hands of torture for almost a month and had hardly managed to stay sane, how would he have survived two years?

"Well let's get down to business; to what do I owe this dubious pleasure of your company?" Ignoring the previous comment seemed like a good idea.

"I came to thank you. While you may not like the idea of helping me in any way, your destruction of the Chitauri has saved me from a painful ending of my life and I am grateful to you."   
He, Tony Stark, had actually helped out Loki god of mischief? It was a big idea to wrap his head around.

"Well don't think I did it for you. You are lucky that Thor took you back to wherever the hell you guys come from. You wouldn't have gotten off this easy if you had stayed here."  
A sudden light appeared in Loki's eyes, which disappeared just as quickly. As if he had some bad epiphany. "I see. My brother has finally learned how to keep his mouth shut about things. Funny how he should learn that when it's in regard to what he put me through." The bitterness nearly had Iron Man feeling a need to comfort the god. Nearly.

"Well you can hardly say you did not deserve any of it." Another glass went down his throat and for a moment Tony remembered the fact that he was in the same room with a psychopath and staying sober would be smart, then the liquid burnt it all away.

"Tell me Stark; did you ever have your mouth sowed shut?" The god hissed. "Did you ever have poison in your eyes, feeling thee burn for the entire time of your punishment. Have you ever…" The man stopped, gasping for breath as if stuck in a nightmare. 

Tony knew that look on his face; he had seen it on his own face right after he had escape from hell. He would say post-traumatic stress syndrome, but he was talking to a god here.  
"Forgive me, I just came to apologize and here I am making accusations. I will take my leave now." The Asgardian seemed to be at a loss for a moment, before moving toward the doors to the terrace.

"Where will you go?" He genuinely wanted to know. He did not get the impression the god was very much liked anywhere.

"Wherever it pleases me." Came the cryptic reply. The doors opened, blowing in a lot of rain and cold air. Loki turned around once more. "Thank you, Tony Stark. For listening to me and not attempting to kill me on sight." With those parting words he walked out. 

The genius billionaire followed him to the door, watching as the man made his way to an open piece of terrace. For a moment nothing happened and then his scepter started to glow and the image of the god started to shimmer. Something seemed to go wrong however as the man once again became solid before collapsing on the ground. Cursing under his breath Tony debated for a second what to do now. He could call Thor to pick up his way ward brother, but somehow that didn't seem right. He could lock the god up in one of his many rooms and punish him Stark style for trying to take over the earth, but clearly Loki had been damaged enough. The last option wasn't one he liked, but did seem the best. When had his day decided that he just did not get enough shit thrown at him? With a final curse Tony rushed outside to the fallen raven haired magician. He slung one of the limp arms around his neck and dragged the unconscious man inside, which he dumped unceremoniously on the couch. He was surprised to find blood on his hands. It certainly wasn't his blood. Unfastening a couple of the buttons of the rather ridiculous outfit he found the source of the red liquid. A large gash ran from just below Loki's ribs to his hipbone. It seemed to have been left unattended and clearly had just been ripped open again. Next to the wound were countless of bruises and scars. He remembered Thor and how he never seemed to have a scratch on him after battle. How much had they done to this god to have him in such a state. One thing was clear though, he needed to be fixed.

"Jarvis!" Tony called as he realized once again that this would be a long night.


	2. Files should sometimes stay closed

Loki awoke gasping for breath and immediately moved when he realized he did not recognize his surroundings. The stinging in his side and complaining muscles made him realize how bad of an idea that was. His scepter was lying at the end of what he now realized was a normal, if not too large, bed. Whoever held him captive had either no idea who he was or meant no harm. With his easy ability to piss people off he guessed the former. He tried to remember how he got at this place, but his memory was a little fuzzy of what had happened after he had traveled to Midgard. Looking out the window confirmed that he at least still was on earth. He turned around when the door opened to his room and immediately lost his balance by the stinging pain in his side. He looked up from the ground in the rather amused face of Tony Stark. 

“I stitched your wounds yesterday and I would appreciate it if you did not rip them out again.” He told him smugly as he held out his hand to pull the god of Mischief back up. It was only then that Loki realized he was not in his armour anymore. 

“What have you done to my clothes?” He hissed, slapping away the helping hand and pulling himself up on the bed. 

“What? You mean that weird costume you were wearing earlier? I think Jarvis already burned it. I don’t like the smell or look of blood and it looked quite frankly ridiculous.” The man didn’t seem very insulted by the hand slapping. 

“And may I ask who dressed me…” he ground out, coming to the sickening realization that it had probably been Stark. 

“Relax, you are not the first man in my bed and you certainly have nothing I haven’t seen before.” Again that annoying smirk. “I am curious though how it is that you are almost entirely green with bruising. I thought you gods did not get hurt? Or was it just envy of my tower, which I could totally understand.” 

“Just because you puny humans cannot hurt the gods, does not mean the gods can’t hurt other gods. Now can you please explain to me how I exactly ended up here.” God that human was more irritating than the last time they had met. 

“You could be a little more grateful, you know. I ended up saving your ass after you came here to apologize, which you aren’t good at bye the way, and then fainted on my roof. Apparently your vanishing trick did not work.” 

Now the memories seemed to crash right back into his brain. The agony of trying to start traveling only to rip open most of his wounds and nearly losing a limb. Even now, after what appeared to be a rather long night resting his energy levels seemed to be drained. “I am sorry, I just do not revel in the idea of someone touching me while unconscious. Now if you do not mind I’d better be off.” Loki tried to push past the smaller man only to grunt in pain as the iron man pushed him in the stomach. 

“You can hardly say that you are in any state to travel. I barely touched you and you already collapse.” Tony examined his fingernails as if totally uninterested. “I doubt you are up for any vanishing tricks and in this state you would hardly make it two streets here on earth before you get killed.” 

“So what do you suggest, avenger.” The god growled at him. 

“I am bored, you are fun to annoy. You have nowhere to go, I have an entire building…are you starting to see the plan?” god that man was irritating. 

“I will not be some monkey to dance whenever you feel the need to be amused.” He bit back. 

“So you aren’t denying that you need a place to stay. Interesting.” Loki internally cursed himself for not doing so. “Don’t worry your godliness I will not make you dance, there are better ways to amuse myself.” A small shiver ran down Loki his back as all the ways of entertaining a certain Tony Stark entered his mind. He was not entirely sure it was because of disgust or something else, but he did know that he would never do that.

“I know I have said it before, but you are really lousy at showing gratitude.” 

“Thank you, once again, Mr. Stark.” The god nearly swallowed his own tongue in revulsion, but the man was right. He should not bite the hand that fed him, sort of. When the smaller guy finally left he sighed, whishing his wounds would heal quicker so he could leave Midgard. He let out a frustrated howl when his mind gladly pointed out that he had nowhere else to go to even if he was healed. 

 

Tony moved swiftly through the halls towards his personal lab. There were very few people that had seen the inside of that particular room. Technically speaking it wasn’t really his lab as he build nothing there, he only designed everything he did not want to share with his company in that place. “Jarvis, give me all the body scans you made of Loki. I want to know what happened to him. Every single detail.” The computer gave a quick affirmative and soon there was the blue shape of Loki his body on the screen with all the spots he had been injured marked in red. It was safe to say that there was hardly any spot on the body that wasn’t red. The previous injuries that had already healed were marked with a pinkish hue and the really old injuries were in a deep green. There were several spots where colors overlapped each other. Especially at the wrists, they appeared to have been broken several times over.   
With a few swipes of his fingers the image zoomed in on the head. There were pink markings next to the lips, like small cuts that had healed. “Tell me Stark; did you ever have your mouth sowed shut?” that explained the scars then, and the pinkish hue that was around the eyes must have been the poison. There were dark pink spots on the face which the computer registered as healed bruises. Tony placed his fingers against the spots, they were fingerprints. His stomach recoiled as it realized that Loki must have been aware of everything and awake when they sowed his mouth shut. 

Tony moved the image down so he had a clear view of the torso. The brightest red was of course the cut which the magician had recently opened up again. There were various shades of pink covering the entire stomach, representing the bruising consistant with a severe kicking. Several of the ribs had been broken and when he turned the figure around there were clear stripes criss cross covering the entire back. He tapped the stripes and a wall of text appeared next to the body. Severe whipping, several times, badly healed, infection. Tony felt sick. He knew he should stop, but he was oddly interested in what had happened to his guest. He moved down to the legs and lower back. The hip was broken twice. That would explain why the man had leaned on the scepter so much. His right foot had been shattered and healed again. There were several cuts on the legs, that didn’t appear to be deep and healed rather well. He tapped them, it didn’t seem strange that these wounds were in between all that extreme violence. Poisoned knife was the explanation, damaging the muscles underneath the skin. While his stomach was already in turmoil it truly rebelled when he realized what the dark red meant near the pelvic area. Loki had been raped and not just once. When he finally finished throwing up he quickly closed the images. How that man even was able to walk was a mystery to Tony. God, how the man was even so much as sane surprised Tony. He had almost lost it when he had been tortured for a month and that was nowhere near close to this. Two years. Two years of unimaginable hell. 

The dark haired man felt sick when he remembered wishing Loki a lifetime in Asgard prison. He would never wish this upon anyone. Not even the god who had thrown him out of the window and nearly took over the earth. Those gods really were a twisted bunch. How could you do this to someone of your own kind? God, he wished he had never opened those files.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN sorry if this put anyone off…..hope I didn’t offend anyone or something like that. I will mostly be going in on the mental damage and not the physical after this.


	3. Tainted men

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is a surprise for Tony when Loki appears at his house two years after the battle. Slowly he pieces together what happened to the Asgardian that made him so jaded. Tony/Loki eventually.

Tony did not want to look at the god in his house and at the same time he did. Loki had moved from his room to the couch in the living room and was intensely staring at a tablet on the table. The genius had a strange fascination to see how the man was still able to function and at the same time he wanted to forget all he had read about in the files. He wanted to forget ever knowing what had happened to the god. Loki would see the revulsion in his face and probably take it the wrong way. Even a tired and hurt god was dangerous in Tony's books. Grabbing his glass of scotch he made his way over to where the raven haired man was sitting.

"It will not actually do anything unless you make it do something." He remarked, startling Loki.

"Who says I want it to do anything, mortal." A little tetchy then.

"No, you're right. I usually also stare at things I'm not interested in." he grabbed the tablet of the table and started to scroll through several of his newer designs. He wasn't unaware of Loki's barely disguised interest and decided to make the god even more interested by putting on a video.

"What is that?" Loki exclaimed, nearly jumping of the couch.

"A bit of mortal engineering and bad singing, don't tell me you don't have that on Asgard?" It was a rather funny sight; seeing the god so surprised. The image was a bit ruined however when said god winched in pain. It reminded Tony once again how badly the god had been hurt and how little he had healed.

"Why would we want that on Asgard. It sounds horrible." The man seemed both intrigued and horrified at the awful sound coming from the slab of technology. Tony turned it off and handed it to the god.

"You gods always claim to be so smart, figure out how it works then. I've got work to do." It wasn't a lie, he hadn't worked on his latest ideas much the past few weeks. He did not feel any inclination really to start now, but the whole "normal" conversation thing with Loki had him more than a little disturbed. He needed a distraction and work was the perfect excuse. When he reached the lab he opened up a new design and set to work, trying to forget about the strange situation he had ended up in.

He had been working for a couple of hours when Jarvis notified him of rather disturbing news. "Sir, your guest seems to be having a panic attack." The AI told him, disrupting him while melting some iron. The sudden movement of shock made him accidently burn his finger, letting out a profanity of curses he put his materials down. Moving as swiftly as he coul,d he shut down everything that should not be left running unattended and made his way to the stairs.

"What happened Jarvis." He questioned as he took the stairs two at a time. A magician having a panic attack was not something he liked in his house. He did not want so see this tower destroyed once again.

"It seems that he has found the body scans, sir."

"Jarvis, how did he get his hands on those. They are secret files." The god might be smart, but he was not smart enough to break his codes. At least that was what Tony hoped or nothing would be safe in his house.

"You gave him your personal tablet while it was unlocked. Mr. Laufeyson figured out how it worked." The AI seemed to feel insulted that his creator thought him to be giving out secret information. The man cursed as he realized his own mistake. For a genius he sometimes really was an idiot.

Loki was sitting on the couch, shaking and breathing heavily. The 3D image of the body was floating in front of him on the table where he had apparently thrown down the tablet. He had not even realized that Tony had reached the top of the stairs and was in the same room.

"Loki, I…." what could he possibly say in his own defense? It had been the worst form of invasion of privacy and Loki did not seem like a very open man to begin with.

"What is this, Stark? Some perverse idea of humiliation?" He never raised his voice, but it only made the god look scarier than if he would have been screaming.

"Believe me, it wasn't….I just needed to know what had happened. I cannot treat your wounds if I do not know them all." It was the truth but it still sounded like a lame excuse in Tony's own ears.

"I never asked for your help mortal. Do you feel better now you know the full extend of my wounds? Does it make you feel better knowing I have repented for my sins? Do you want to take another shot at me, knowing I am not strong enough to fight you?" God, he felt like the worst person in the world for what he had done. He however started to feel angry at the god's accusations.

"How dare you put me in the same league as the ones who put you through that! I agreed that you needed to be punished, but never did I agree to torturing you! Seriously, do you think that lowely of everyone?" Perhaps yelling wasn't the best approach, but Loki had pisssed the smaller man off.

"Who do you think put me in that prison Stark? My father and my brother personally escorted me there, so don''t expect me to feel sorry if I do not feel inclined to trust the people that placed me in their hands." While Loki seemed to be in control, Tony could clearly see the tightly coiled muscles and the green eyes darting around the room. He was a cornered animal and would lash out the moment something came near him. Raising his hands in surrender he tried a more diplomatic approach than just yelling at the god.

"I know that trust is not something I have a claim to, but I would never wish that upon anyone. Not even you. If I had known what they would do I would have never let Thor take you with him. I truly did not mean to invade your privacy Loki, I just needed to know." The man was heaving, trying to get air back into his lungs. What had happened to the self assured man that had once stood across from him and thrown him through a window. It was like looking in a mirror, he had been the same when he came back from Afghanistan. Only this was so much worse.

"You just needed to know…really Stark that's your excuse: your insatiable curiosity? I am surprised you can even look at me Stark. Don't think I can't see the revulsion in your face; you want to look away and you would not be the first. I am the god of lies and mischief; I am not meant to be liked Stark." The bitterness and self-hatred was so obvious that he nearly choked. It was wrong.

"The revulsion isn't meant for you. I admit I have no particular liking for you, but I do not wish this upon the worst of my enemies. Which you aren't for your information."

"I am a tainted man Mr. Stark. You know how it feels right? Having your powers taken away from you? The right to say yes or no to things? You cannot deny that you are still hurt by it and it has been how many years?"

"You tell me I have no right to enter your private information, but you seem to know an awful lot about me." He knew the god was just lashing out at him but he did not need to be reminded of the fact that he still suffered from nightmares and flashbacks.

"Well then consider us even mortal. You know just as well as I do that some things are meant to stay with you. So stop whining about it and looking for answers because you will not be getting them." With that the angry god marched past him. How had things ended so messed up?


	4. A state between awake and asleep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is a surprise for Tony when Loki appears at his house two years after the battle. Slowly he pieces together what happened to the Asgardian that made him so jaded. Tony/Loki eventually.

Loki did not emerge from his room that night or the two nights following. While Tony would probably never admit it out loud; he was a bit worried about his house guest. The anger had long since subsided and he felt guilty about it now. Of course the god would not trust him. Loki had been betrayed far too often and he was, after all, the god of lies. Liars hardly ever were able to take a truth at face value. Tony was sure the taller man had some sort of gift to see whether you were lying or not, but a wounded animal would lash out at everything and forget about logic.

"Jarvis, where is Loki now?" He asked his computer while screwing a bolt into his suit where it had gotten loose after a particular annoying fight.

"Sir, the god is currently at the swimming pool." The genius almost dropped the arm he was working on.

"You mean he has left his room?"

"Unless he has a swimming pool in his bedroom, yes." Came the sarcastic reply.

"Do not get smart with me or I'll change you for a better model." Tony bit back as he moved out of the lab and up the stairs. Of all the places the god could have gone he went to the pool. The pool was hardly used really. The only time the genius could remember was when the entire Avengers team had decided some R&R was necessary and swimming was the best option. Tony had not minded it, but he still retained a dislike for water after the multiple drownings he had suffered in Afghanistan. He felt rather ridiculous that he was sneaking around in his own house, but he didn't want to startle the immortal. He just wanted to see if he was okay.

The room was empty it seemed until Tony noticed a pale blue shape at the bottom of the swimming pool. Even if he hadn't known it had to be Loki, the black hair certainly gave him away. He had no inclination to get the man out of the water so he settled himself on one of the sunbeds near the edge. He would need to come up for air soon enough, right?

After nearly six minutes Tony had enough. Stripping down to his underwear he jumped into the pool. Bright red eyes met him as he gasped for breath. The water was positively freezing which had shocked him into opening his mouth, letting out all the air. The blue version of Loki had a feral smile on his face as he watched Tony struggle. After a couple of seconds he changed his looks back to his more human form and with it the water warmed back up to a more normal temperature. All his muscles screamed against the lack of oxygen. A strong hand grabbed him by his biceps and dragged him up to the surface. The moment they broke the surface Loki moved away from him.

"What the hell was that?" Tony gasped, still sucking in the sweet taste of air.

"That Stark was my true form." Loki commented as he pulled himself out of the pool. The billionaire was silent as he watched the muscles move underneath the white skin. There were pink lines crisscrossing on the god its back. 'Severe whipping' his mind supplied. For a moment Tony wanted to reach out and touch them, but he quickly reminded himself that he would probably become a flambé if he tried that. Water droplets flowed down the man's body as he grabbed a towel from one of the sunbeds. There was still an angry red line on Loki's stomach but most of the bruises were already gone or in the yellow/green state of healing. Still the skin was a beautiful snow white, the eyes a clear green and he had cheekbones to die for. He wasn't quite as build as Thor, but he certainly did not lack muscles. The man was…well... beautiful. For a moment Tony felt inadequate, but he soon reminded himself he was dealing with a god here. Of course he would look worse.

"Then what are you exactly? Because strangely enough I don't think Thor is able to do that." With a few quick strokes he was at the edge of the pool. Loki gave him a glare that would have most people quivering in their boots. It was a good thing that Tony wasn't most people.

"While I appreciate your hospitality I do not feel the need to have a 'heart to heart' with you Stark, and I would appreciate it if you refrained yourself from mentioning my brother."

"Could you at least tell me what you were doing on the bottom of my pool? Or was that just some strange god thing." Tony grabbed a towel for himself as well, trying to act suave in front of the annoyed god. He was not intimidated by another man's beauty, no way.

"It was merely an exercise to calm my mind. A state between awake and sleeping." There were bags underneath his green eyes and a certain strain in the muscles around them. Loki had not been sleeping well Tony concluded.

"You usually do that in freezing water?" It was clear that Loki rather wanted to leave instead of having a 'normal' conversation with him. The genius rather wanted to be somewhere else as well, but the man was living in his house and they could not keep avoiding each other.

"The water was merely to drown out noise." There was an awkward moment of staring at each other before they finally decided they had spent enough time together. When Tony went to go upstairs to grab some dry clothes he turned around to Loki who was just about to head the other direction.

"It is normal to have nightmares you know."

"I don't have nightmares, Stark." The god bit back, but it lacked its usual venom. Deciding not to argue about it Tony continued the walk to his room.

Loki had never slept well. He could not remember a single night in all his centuries of living that he had slept more than a few hours and awoken refreshed. Magic always helped him to look revived and stay awake during boring meetings. The older he got the more worse his dreams became. Spells, memories of murders, lies he had told; they all haunted him. Yet, his dreams back then seemed peaceful and serene to the memories that haunted him now. He feared closing his eyes for the images would come. The pain would be remembered, the degradation. The screams he had wanted to let out but was not able with his mouth sowed shut. The meditative state was a much better option, even if it meant that his magic and physical healing would take a setback.

He groaned as he tossed once again on the bed. It was comfortable and his mind was having trouble rebelling against sleep. The iron man had interrupted his meditation leaving him more exhausted than he had been before the session. He struggled to keep his eyes open, but after several more tosses they finally slipped closed.

No, no please don't! Not that. Excruciating pain as the whip descended on his skin. His screams as Sif held his face while Balder sowed his mouth shut. The pain in his lower back as someone or something penetrated him. The wetness on his cheeks as he cried out. The humiliation of being caught crying. The taunting.

With a gasp Loki shot up in his bed. Sweat dripping from his skin as he tried to regain his breathing. The memories always seemed so eerily real. The sheets stuck to his skin and with an annoyed growl he tossed them off the bed. Sleep would not be coming any time soon and there was too much adrenalin in his body to even try to think about meditating. Refusing to ponder the reason he was awake, Loki swiftly made his way to the living room. Maybe that 'tablet' would keep him occupied. It had been rather fun earlier, till he had found that terrible file.

The city lights twinkled merrily outside the windows and Loki could clearly see why Stark liked to live so high up. It must have given the man a feeling of being a god, if his ego hadn't gotten him there already with the flying. He stretched himself a little, the normal Midgardian clothes still felt strange to him. They made him feel a lot more vulnerable than the heavy armor he had been used to wearing. Then again he hadn't truly felt strong in years now. His magic was still depleted and his body was on the mend. One day he would return and take revenge on everyone that had come into his path.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New link for you frostiron lovers…it really is an amazing video: www. Youtube watch?NR= 1&feature=endscree n&v=YQBi Y_IvIaA


	5. Moron

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It is a surprise for Tony when Loki appears at his house two years after the battle. Slowly he pieces together what happened to the Asgardian that made him so jaded. Tony/Loki eventually.

Loki felt all the life seep out of him as he stood in front of the large window. All the energy, all the want to keep so much as standing, just left. He just crumbled down, pressing his forehead against the window. The numbness was a blessing. Such a change to the usual agony that rested in his bones. After a few minutes he opened his eyes and then he noticed it, he had changed to his natural state. The blue fingers pressed against the ground left little crystals behind when he pulled away. Looking up he saw his reflection in the glass. Orange/red eyes that seemed to burn like fire, blue skin with lighter colored patterns covering his face. Ugly. The monster you told your children about. It seemed to happen more often lately.

He would change without really a good reason for it. He figured it had something to do with the inner turmoil that disrupted his magic. Magic took focus and a kind of balance or it would either blow up in your face or not come to you at all. There was a reason why there were so very few sorcerers existing in Asgard and most of them were near Valhalla as it was. In a couple of years he would be the last to be able to practice Magic and he was not even wanted in Asgard anymore. He snorted at their stupidity. Once being a sorcerer gained you respect, now they preferred fighting oafs like Thor. He had been tolerated by Thor's friends because his brother liked him so much, but when he wasn't around there were jabs at his lack of fighting skills. They all seemed to forget how often his illusions and tricks had saved them from being squashed like ants.

The memories brought back the pain that had been numbed for a moment. He hated them. All the Aesirs. The only magic they ever used was to harm others. The images of his son being turned into a wolf and killing his other son, all to punish their father. Sleipnir, who now was used as a simple horse for Odin, Fenrir being tied up for centuries with a sword in his mouth, Jormungand who was hidden somewhere in the deep dark depts of the ocean here on Midgard. Hel was the only one who had gotten away relatively well. They had not done anything wrong, but because of their looks and the prophecies made they had been exiled or murdered. Prophecies did not always come true, but the other Aesirs had just been looking for a reason. He let out a howl of anger at the injustice of it all.

"Loki, what the fuck are you doing?" a sleepy looking Tony questioned as he entered the room. Loki did not answer him but he apparently looked haggard enough for the other man to guess the answer. "Nightmare then?" again, no reply. Apparently the mortal was not awake enough to realize the god was no longer a normal color. Loki tried to stabilize his emotions somewhat so he would be able to change back. He took a few deep breaths and slowly his fingers turned back to their original pale white.

"Fuck." Tony cursed as he hit his toe on his way to the liquor cabinet. "Jarvis, turn the lights on." Within seconds the room was lit up and with it the still half blue Loki. While Tony had seen his blue form before it startled him again when he saw the god sitting against the window. The normal color was making its way past the neck and soon enough the god had his normal skin back.

"You know, that is one awesome party trick." He commented, grabbing some form of strong alcohol and pouring two glasses.

"Is there a reason to your insane chatter, or are you just trying to annoy me human?" The god groused, not in a mood for talking.

"Are you in a mood for drinking?" Tony asked, holding out the second glass filled with amber liquid. The god took it out of his hand without a word and proceeded to throw it back in one go.

"Okaay, another one then?" he asked, when the god shook his head he proceeded to sit down next to him. The genius had no idea why he kept trying to establish some form of contact with Loki. The god clearly did not want it and Tony felt rather uncomfortable with it himself. For a moment there was a silence between the two men, but the billionaire had never been one to stay silent for long.

"Do you want to go back to Asgard once you are healed?"

"Could you please just shut that thing you call a mouth." The god grumbled, but he didn't make a move to leave the room. Judging by his appearance he probably was too tired to lift his head, let alone move his entire body.

"I'm sorry god of grumpiness, but in case you hadn't noticed I never shut up…what is the problem in answering a couple of questions? It's not like you have something better to do…" Tony told him, an edge to his voice. He was getting quite annoyed with the prissy god.

"Honestly Stark, do you have nothing better to do? I do not feel a need to answer your questions or to amuse you with stories." The dark haired man snapped.

"So what? You are going to stay in my house, eat my food and drink my alcohol, but you are too high and mighty to act like you are damn well grateful."

"Is that how you humans show gratefulness? To answer questions when the questioner doesn't care for the answer?"

"Fuck Loki, can you be just a little less hostile. I think I deserve that considering you are fucking staying at my place."

"So you do not deny you do not care for the answer?" The god snapped.

"I didn't say that. I'm just saying that you do not have to bite my head off when I ask you a question. Besides if I did not want to hear the answer I would not ask, you moron." Sleep had gotten to Tony, he could not even remember when he last called someone a moron…he usually was more creative with his insults. The god blinked owlishly at the insult. Apparently he hadn't expected something like that either. The corners of his mouth turned up, it was nearly invisible but Tony caught it. It made him feel a bit better. He didn't like Loki, not by a long shot, but after reading, and seeing, what the god had been through…well he deserved a bit of happiness. Even if it was at Tony's expense.

Silence reigned for a while as Tony got up to refill his now empty glass. He tried not to show his surprise as Loki talked. "I do not plan to return to Asgard ever again. Even If they wanted me back at court, which I can assure you they don't, I would not want to go back." Tony could believe that. He was pretty sure the torture had been executed by people high up the food chain. Even if Loki would be able to avoid the people that had done this to him, he would not be able to forget that the rest had sat back and done nothing.

"Is there no one back there that would like to see you? No wife or something?" He wanted to smack his head on the bar for the insensitive question really. Alcohol, no sleep and a weird situation made his already sharp tongue quite painful apparently. The look Loki gave him made it very clear that if Tony did not smash his head on the bar, he would.

"You have not done your homework on us gods then? Bad form Stark, always know your enemy." The god almost seemed smug.

"Are you my enemy then? Cause you do not look that dangerous right now." Yes, Tony definitely had a death wish. The god however didn't favor him with a reply and instead got up and left the room. After downing his second glass of scotch he decided that going back to bed was probably a smart idea. "Jarvis, remind me to look up Norse mythology tomorrow. Focus on things to do with Loki." He called out.

"Will do, sir." Tony was going to find out how life had been for a certain trickster god.


	6. Business deal

Tony's head was pounding with all the information he had just consumed. He didn't think there was an expert on earth that knew more about Loki and Norse mythology than him. Unless Thor visited that is. God, after reading all those stories Tony could truly sympathize with his current guest. He did of course need to verify some of the stories, as the myths probably weren't all true, but the general idea was there. Loki's life sucked. He was in his lab writing on one of the screens. Small sentences and words that summed up parts of the god's history and hardly any of it was good. He did wonder about Sigyn though. She was supposed to be married to Loki, but when he had asked the god yesterday about people wanting him on Asgard he didn't look like he had anyone. The AI shook him from his reverie however, ending a nearly five hour brainstorm session.

"Sir, Miss Romanoff, Mr Barton and Mr Rogers are here to see you."

"Shit, where is Loki at the moment?" Tony cursed as he shut down the file.

"In his room, the same place he has been the entire day sir." If he had been programmed for it the AI probably had said duh.

"Let them in then." It wouldn't do for the team to find out who he had for a guest, but the computer was right. Loki hadn't been out of his room ever since last night and he probably wouldn't leave it this evening.

"Cap, Tash, Robin Hood, to what do I owe this pleasure." Tony exclaimed as he entered the room where the spies had made themselves comfortable.

"Bruce has had an episode and requested to be alone for a while and since we hadn't heard from you in a while…" Natasha told him as she accepted the coffee he offered her.

"How have you been Tony?" Rogers asked him. He wanted to tell them that his life had been a bit insane the last few days, well more than the usual at least, but it almost felt like a betrayal to Loki. The other avengers had been just as pissed off as Tony when they found out the trickster god had been let go after only two years. The difference now however was that Tony now knew what those years had entailed. The others would gladly rip the gods head off the moment they knew he was here.

"I've been fine. Working on some new enhancements to the suit. What have you guys been up to, besides saving the world?"

"Fury has been pissed of more than usual. Now with Loki somewhere out there he's seeing ghosts everywhere. We have been traveling all over the world for the smallest of things. I really hope that god has died somewhere because I am getting insane with jet-lag. Thor really could have given us a better warning than just telling us his brother got released." Barton grumbled, grabbing something stronger than coffee from the liquor cabinet.

Tony swallowed thickly. "Speaking about the big lumberjack, where is Thor?" while having the avengers here was dangerous, he certainly did not want to have Thor drop by for a visit.

"Last I heard he was visiting Jane and would head back to Asgard after that." Steve answered, his uniform was a strong contrast to the dark couch he was sitting on making him stand out even more than usual.

"He seems to have finally given up on that idiot of a brother of his. I think it's good for him to get rid of him. Loki clearly does not want to be part of that family." The black widow accepted a glass of scotch from Barton, who had made one for everyone in the room.

"Sir, your guest is moving this way." The AI spoke, making Tony nearly drop his glass.

"Okay, guys it's time for you to go." While Steve immediately got up to leave the room, he always got rather embarrassed by Tony's wild lifestyle, the other two looked rather amused.

"Working on the suit, right. Please introduce us to your guest, I would love to meet her." Barton joked as he only made himself more comfortable.

"I bet you would birdy, considering that would be as close to action you will ever get, but could you just leave now. Don't want to scare her away, might want her to come back." He tried to keep the desperation from his voice, as he calculated how much time he had to get them out of the room before Loki would enter it.

"Oh come on, if someone would scare her off it would be you." Natasha joked, but she got up anyway dragging Clint with her. Turns out it was too late.

Everyone froze when they caught sight of each other. Loki seemed to be slowly moving backwards, trying to make himself as small as he possibly could while standing. Tony was only just in time to step in front of him before Natasha her dagger ended up in the god's throat. For a moment there was a tense silence as they all stared at each other. Clint and Natasha looked ready to kill and only then ask questions and Steve looked torn between attacking Loki or making the others step back.

"Move aside Tony, I still have unfinished business with him." Hawkeye groused.

"Can't do that Clint. He has served his time in Asgard. I can't let you play judge." Tony had the idea that he might end up with a dagger in his back by Loki if he told the other avengers about the torture.

"Screw that, two years is not enough in my book." The genius almost expected the woman her hair to stand up like a cat's.

"You want to start a war with Asgard. He served his time, if we attack a prince of Asgard they will not take it lightly. I doubt Thor can save us then." He was really grasping for straws here, hoping the others didn't know that they would probably be praised by the other gods for hurting the trickster. They apparently didn't, because the three heroes put away their weapons again.

"Can you at least tell us what he's doing here?" Steve tried to defuse the tension. That was a very good question and one Tony did not know an immediate lie for.

"I came for knowledge." Loki interrupted them. "Somehow Stark here is immune to my Magic and I wanted to know why. This whole trip is about nothing but knowledge and Stark has been gracious enough to offer me lodgings." It was a far cry from a very good lie, but the straight face made it very convincing. The others looked at him for confirmation.

"Yes, I want to know how his magic works and he's allowing me to run some tests on him while I give him information about the arc reactor. It's just a business deal guys, it doesn't mean I like him any more than you do." That last thing seemed to put them a little more at ease.

"And what if he uses it against us once he has gathered enough information."

"I promise you, I will leave Midgard alone. I have no intent to fight another war." That seemed sincere enough.

"How long will he be staying here Tony, because I will not be visiting with him around." It was logical that Barton wanted to be nowhere near the god that once enslaved him, and the others seemed to agree with it.

"I don't know how long it will take. I will let you know the moment he leaves. Do you think you can perhaps leave Thor out of this? I do not want to see this place blown up, again." He was fond of his tower and he doubted Loki was very eager to see his brother again. They all gave a nod of consent and left the building. The adrenaline had him soon crashing on the couch as it left his body. Loki however did not move for a few minutes, seemingly frozen.

"You can sit down you know." Tony called, making the god look at him instead of at the door where his enemies had just left.

"You could have warned me they were here Stark." The god spat at him, his muscles slowly relaxing from their rigid position.

"You stay in your room most of the time and they weren't planning to stay long so I figured there wasn't much to worry about. They just dropped in for a visit, if I had known it earlier this morning I would have told you." Tony was just too tired to fight at the moment. Suddenly he remembered something. "I have been reading up on my Norse mythology; is it true you have five children?"

"No Stark, I had five children. Somehow, you humans managed to get that part of our history correctly." The god bit out and left the room. Tony sometimes hated it when humans were right. Cursing his curiosity he went over to the bar. He needed a very strong drink.

It was nearly four hours later when he finally decided he had done enough thinking for the night and headed off to bed. He wondered if Loki was still awake and whether the god would accept an apology from him. He had been an insensitive jerk. He was about to knock on the door when he heard it. It wasn't particularly loud, but the whimper that fell from the gods lips tore at his heart. No one should sound that broken. He inched the door open a bit to see if the god was awake or not and found him tossing and turning on the bed. Loki's hair was in disarray and his skin was matted with sweat. It was the god's face however that had Tony rushing to the bed. The eyes were clenched shut and there were tear tracks covering his face, his mouth opened in a silent scream. God, did he looked like this when he had his nightmares? Somewhere in the back of his mind his brain told him that waking someone in a nightmare was not a good idea, but he ignored it. Whatever demons Loki was facing in his dreams, they were certainly worse than the ones he would face when waking up.

"Loki..wake up. Wake up, reindeer games. Come on." He grabbed one of the shoulders and shook the god. Bright green eyes were suddenly looking at him, still clouded with the remnants of the dream that had been torturing the god so distressed.

"Stark?" Loki rasped. His head was pounding and his throat felt parched. Had he woken up the genius billionaire? He rubbed his hands over his face and almost recoiled when he realized it was wet with tears.

"It's okay, you were having a nightmare. I'll go get you a glass of water." The smaller man entered the adjoined bathroom and Loki watched him with curious eyes. The human was being nice to him, a thing that almost felt foreign to Loki after so many years. The meeting with the avengers had reminded him again how helpless he was without his magic and it had triggered a far more violent nightmare. Not that the others were any better, but this one had been especially painful. So very vivid. He shuddered at it's memory. Stark was back a little too soon for Loki's liking and handed him the glass. To the god's surprise he actually sat down at the end of the bed, looking worried.

"What do you want Stark?" he felt too vulnerable at the moment to defend himself, and he wished the man would just leave the room.

"I was about to ask you the same actually."

"What?" did the man enjoy confusing him?

"Do you plan to continue keeping everything to yourself or do you plan to actually talk about it? What do you want to do about this Reindeer games." The last insult sounded more like a pet name than an actual jab at him. For a moment Loki regarded the man in front of him. While he did not like his questions, he did possess a certain courage for voicing them. Even without his magic Loki could easily crush his skull.

"Why would I want to talk about it human? Don't you already know everything thanks to your cursed computer?"

"Jarvis can only give me your physical wounds. Don't you guys have therapists where you come from? It's not right to ignore it and all that crap." Still the usual Stark then.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't under the impression it mattered whether I talked or not." He replied haughtily.

"Of course it is. You will not get any rest if you keep doing this." He pointedly looked at the messed up bed.

"Really Stark, how do you people say this again; the rock calling the kettle black?" Loki hissed as he rearranged the sheets, suddenly very aware he wasn't wearing a shirt.

"Maybe, but that only means that I am right. You can hardly call me healthy... and you don't want to become like me do you?" well the human had him there.

"Can't you just stop this inane chatter Human. I does not matter whether I do or do not heal. It is of no concern of you." He refused to look in those annoying brown eyes as they would probably give him that pitying look. It was always the same; Pity or anger. When the smaller man made to get up and leave a sudden panic gripped Loki's heart and before he realized what he was doing he had grabbed the other man's wrist. He let it go immediately, as if he had been burned. It was a ridiculous and illogical idea that Stark would be able to keep the nightmares away, but somehow his mind registered Stark as safe. Completely unfounded of course. He was surprised when the man did not leave the room immediately. He seemed to be thinking about something.

"Scoot over, Rudolf." He muttered, lifting up the sheet and laying himself down on the bed. Loki immediately moved to the other side to avoid contact.

"What are you doing Stark?" he hissed.

"Just go back to sleep Loki. Jarvis, light." The room returned to darkness and for a moment Loki just stared at the man that was lying on his side with his back turned to him. A soft blue glow was visible on the other side where the arc reactor shone. Stark had apparently picked up on his irrational thoughts and decided to stay, like the god wanted him to. Loki refused to think about the implications of it all, but a small amount of gratitude made its way into his heart. As he lay back down again, his back turned towards Stark, he let his eyes close. Maybe it was an irrational thought, but it did make him feel a bit better to have the iron man near him.


	7. Endorphins

Loki woke up alone later that day feeling more rested than he had been in a while. For a moment he wondered where Stark had gone, but he soon found the note on the table next to him. Find me in the lab whenever you are read. So the scientist had already started without him. After washing away the sweat of his nightmare and grabbing an apple to eat Loki headed downstairs to where he knew the lab was. It clearly was soundproof because he could only see the genius's lips move before the door opened.

"Good morning sleeping beauty. Feeling up for a little brain-picking?" Loki could only stare in amazement at the lab. It was a mess.

"How on earth do you get anything done here, Stark?" he questioned as he sidestepped a box which contained some form of screws.

"Oh I usually make JARVIS clean it up once I'm finished." He pushed some paper off the table so he could put down another pile. "This is all the information I have so far gathered on that little scepter thing you have."

"That little scepter thing could easily kill you, so a little respect please. Where is it if I may ask?" Really how did he find anything in this dump. Granted it was a very high tech and expensive dump, but still a dump. The only things Loki really could clearly make out were the computer screens, the tables, and the cars. The rest was a mix of paper, screws bolts and all other sorts of metal pieces. With a look of curiosity he held up a carrot to stark who shrugged. "Experiment." He answered as if that explained everything.

"It's over here." He pulled open two small cabinet doors which revealed his scepter in all its glory, on a plush cushion.

"At least you are treating it better than the rest of your stuff." Loki huffed as he took his beloved staff out of its holder.

"Please Rudolf, my iron suit is polished every single day. My creations are always taken care of." The other man huffed. "Now on to the good part; that magic of yours what is it made of?" the energy Stark radiated reminded him of the little kids during the feasts at Asgard.

"My magic is a form of energy, you didn't figure that one out yet Stark?"

"Of course I figured that out. It's a pure element, I can't break it down into different ones. What I like to know is how you create it." The other man huffed, opening another screen which showed Loki in battle using his scepter. For a moment he said nothing, as he watched the damage he had caused.

"You mortals have something you call Zen, a state of pure balance. Magic does not just exist, though there are those with a certain aptitude for it. You have to learn how to create that balance within and then reach for the energy that comes from that balance there. Once you have reached that point, you train until it becomes easier to tap into it." Loki explained, tracing every little dent that had been made into his staff and all the runes that had been carved into it.

"So if I started to do some Yoga, I would be able to do magic?" Tony questioned with a hopeful look, which Loki was happy to crush.

"The only thing you would be able to do then Stark, is shut up for long periods of time. Your kind has been without magic for so long that it will never come to you, though there still are some born with a certain gift for it. Seeing lost souls for instance, or a special connection to animals, and once long ago not all your fortune tellers were frauds." The blue stone at the top glowed a little brighter when he placed his finger against it.

"So you have many sorcerers back at Asgard? I didn't get the impression Thor could do more than swing his hammer and create bad weather." The genius was scribbling down words on the board that summarized the conversation.

"Thor is, like the most of the gods, a fool. Sorcery is a skill that requires a focus of the mind that is lost on most of them. They prefer glorious battles and fighting skills over the brain. The only people left on Asgard that can do more than fight are of the first generation and soon magic will die with them." While Loki whished only bad things on most of the other realm, he felt like a part of a dying breed and it hurt.

"Why would it die out? You said it isn't something hereditary so any god can learn it right?" It was funny how interested Stark was in the information the god gave him. For years Loki had yearned for someone to share the knowledge with and the one person that wanted to hear it was a mortal.

"You understand the concept of energy Stark, when you cannot control it, most of the times it becomes volatile. Beginning sorcerers need to be trained. Letting them loose on Asgard would destroy the city. I once nearly destroyed half the palace and myself by practicing on my own." Stark laughed out loud at that.

"I can remember my dad being mad at me for accidently blowing up the car that I had rewired. Seems we were both volatile energy sources." He joked and against all Loki's will the corners of his mouth still turned up. "You can still teach them though, right Rudolf? You don't look like you are dying anytime soon."

"You assume that I will return to Asgard, which I will not. I am part of a dying breed I'm afraid."

"Wouldn't you be able to teach your children then?" apparently the mortal had spoken before he actually thought about it because he immediately went tense, expecting an attack from Loki. All the god felt though was sharp pain in his chest.

"I have already lost five children Stark, I do not wish to lose another one." He refused to see the pity in the other man's eyes.

"Isn't Jormungand still here on earth? Couldn't you visit him or something?"

"He was taken away when he was born. He does not know anything but the depts of your ocean. Even if I wanted to see him I'm afraid he would scare too many of you mortals if he goes above water and I cannot go below water." He wanted to make Stark shut up about the subject.

"I see…" for a moment there was an awkward silence.

"I have told you about my magic, now tell me how you ended up with that night light in your chest?" the human only blinked at him wondering whether he was joking or not.

"This night light is keeping me alive and powers my suit, so a little respect please." He threw Loki's own words back, making the immortal man grin.

"I'm sorry I will talk about the impressive night light with a little more respect, now tell me."

"You didn't say the magic word…" Tony taunted him. Loki rolled his eyes.

"Tell me about it….please." the last word was said with such disdain that Stark cracked up. When he finally stopped laughing, he explained how he had ended up with the arc reactor and what it did.

"So you just have a very big and powerful magnet in your body? It explains why my magic did not work on you then, it must have rejected the energy. Two negative poles, they probably bounced off each other." Loki mused, turning an older arc reactor around in his hands. Inspecting the small thing that contained so much power from every angle.

"Probably, I was able to use Thor's energy against him though. I think I plowed him through three or four trees before he stopped flying through the air." Loki laughed.

"I saw that, the first time my brother felt his energy used against him. Oh I still enjoy that memory." He smiled wistfully. Tony continued making some notes on his board, so Loki decided to snoop around a bit. He opened several drawers and cabinets. He paid no attention to Tony who was currently suiting up to try some new technology he had recently installed. When he found a cabinet that was locked he could not resist. While his magic was still not strong enough to do anything powerful like healing, he certainly could open a lock. He opened the small panel to find a lot of grey pieces flying around in the box, seemingly suspended in the air. There was a small switch on the side, which Loki turned off to see what would happen. It was only for his godlike reflexes that he was missed by the object as they suddenly moved forward. There were several thunking sounds as they hit the armor Tony was currently wearing. One grey piece was stuck right between Iron man's eyes.

"Loki…" even with the metallic voice from the suit, Stark made it sound very threatening. "Did you open the box with the magnets?" it really was a rhetorical question, but he still felt the need to answer it.

"That depends, was it the locked one with the little switch on the side?...otherwise no." It was hard to take the man serious when there were three pieces stuck on the metallic ass. He struggled for a few seconds, but in the end the need to laugh won and for the first time in probably a decade Loki truly laughed. Not his usual derisive laugh, or the fake one used to satisfy his brother and their idiotic guests. No, this was the real thing with all the endorphins included and it felt wonderful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The songs I listened to during this chapter were Florence and the machine: no light, no light and Hugo with 99 problems.


	8. Of sleeping and Potts

After finally removing the magnets from his suit, Tony decided that keeping Loki in his lab was dangerous to his health. Loki however had seemed on some sort of high and had not stopped smiling the entire time, which somehow made the whole situation bearable. His laughter really was contagious and Tony felt no need to bring the man down. The memories would do that soon enough he supposed. "Come on Reindeer games, let's get out of here." He said steering the man out of his lab.

"Seriously Stark, why do you keep such strong magnets in your laboratory?" He pulled away slightly from the touch on his shoulder, but not as harshly as he would have done yesterday. Stark had stayed with him without asking why or gaining anything from it yesterday and that was something Loki could not quite shake off. Why had he done it? He did feel indebted to the man somehow.

The man just looked at him like he was an idiot, not deigning the question with an answer. They had stayed down longer than Loki thought they had been. The sun was already setting in the sky, bathing the room in a beautiful orange glow.

"Right dinner then, Jarvis call Domino's and order the usual."

"Certainly sir." The computer answered. After a little over a week in Stark mansion he had gotten rather used to the British AI, but sometimes it still startled him.

"I do have to ask Stark, why a British accent?" he sank down on the couch, winching when he jarred a still sore muscle.

"Why not, Jarvis is like my butler and the cliché is for them to be British or he can pretend to be James Bond." Stark dropped down next to him, propping his feet on the small table in front of it.

"I'm sorry, he can pretend to be whom exactly?" Stark looked as if he pitied him.

"Please tell me that you know the brilliance that is James Bond." Tony groaned.

"Would I ask if I already knew the answ-" He got interrupted by the sound of the doorbell.

"Your pizza has arrived, sir and please do not call me a butler again…sir." The AI sounded way too smug for a computer. Tony grumbled something about disabling it and getting a different model which got him a mocking 'of course, sir' from Jarvis. The smell that returned with the mortal was mouthwatering.

"What is that, it smells like nothing we ever had on Asgard?" He questioned, not taking his eyes of the big box in Stark's hands, which seemed to amuse the smaller man.

"This is the best invention ever made by mankind and that includes Jarvis." He flipped open the box and took out a piece. It was both sickening and fascinating seeing the large amount of grease and cheese enter Tony's mouth. It took Loki a moment too late to realize he was staring, because when he finally looked away he heard the man chuckle next to him. "Just take a piece, it will not kill you…well perhaps it will give you coronary problems, but not for a few years though."

With trepidation Loki took the offered piece from the other man's hands, taking a small bite. It was definitely nothing he had ever tasted before, but he knew he had missed out on something in that regard. Tony was staring at him, trying to figure out if he liked the pizza and for a moment the god was tempted to spit it out just to annoy Stark. It would be a waste of good food though and Loki was truly hungry. He just raised an eyebrow at the staring and the mortal got the hint and continued eating his own piece.

"Jarvis, put on some James Bond. It's time our god here learned the true greatness that's earth." A big screen dropped down from the ceiling and the lights dimmed till the only light came from the light outside and the screen before them. Settling back against the couch Loki just decided to not ask a thing and just see what would happen.

"Loki, Loki! Rudolf!" Something, or rather someone, was straddling him. 'No not this!' in a moment of pure fright Loki threw off the offending person immediately taking up a defensive stance at the intruder who woke him. "JARVIS LIGHT!" someone called harshly.

"Stark?" the befuddled god questioned. What on earth had happened?

"Yes, hello sleeping beauty." The other man grumbled. He was clutching the back of his head and looking murderously at his coffee table.

"What in Odins name happened?" The dream which he had been woken from was fleeing from his mind as he focused his mind on the current problem.

"You were having a nightmare, again may I add. You know it isn't very polite to fall asleep during an epic movie marathon." The man finally stood up, his hands were clean so clearly he didn't split his head open on the corner of the table.

"Can we get to the point where you were straddling me?" He surveyed the room. The cushions that had once been on the couch were across the room and the coffee table had moved further away from said couch.

"You were screaming." Tony seemed rather upset about having seen that. "You were yelling for them to stop and when I tried to wake you you didn't respond to my voice so I grabbed your shoulder….and then you got all spastic and started thrashing around. You made my living room a war zone. Anyway you wouldn't stay still and would probably end up hurting yourself so I did the best I could keeping you still while trying to wake you up." Loki felt embarrassed and hurt that Stark had seen him in such a bad shape. He had been there the night before, but he hadn't been this violent yesterday. He tried to remember what it was that he had dreamt and soon wished he didn't.

"What on earth did you dream about, Loki? Really because that was some scary shit you pulled there?" Stark moved towards the bar, pouring them both a large glass of his favorite amber liquid. He took the glass with trembling hands. Should he tell the man? He decided against it, but then he saw Stark feel the back of his head again. He had hurt the man who had only tried to help.

"You know the things I have suffered in the prisons in Asgard." He swallowed most of the liquid in one go, needing all the help he could get in keeping his emotions under control. "I was reliving the more unsavory things done to me, so you can understand when I found you above me…I panicked, forgive me."

"There is nothing to forgive. I probably would have done the same thing." For once there was none of the famous snark that the human possessed. While he hated the intrusion on his person with the file Jarvis had of him, he was glad that he did not have to spell everything out for Stark. "If you are so uncomfortable with people near you, why did you ask me to stay yesterday…or was it this morning?"

"I did no such thing!" Loki exclaimed. "It was you who climbed into my bed without asking."

Tony gave him a look that said 'please' "Well you didn't kick me out either or have a nightmare."

"It seems that your kind gestures have made my subconscious recognize you as safety. Do not worry Stark, the next time you come into my bed uninvited you will be just as soon on the floor next to it." He wanted to make sure that the man understood that Loki could take care of himself.

"What if I was invited?" Loki looked at him appalled, which made the man crack a small smile. "You didn't have a nightmare and if it means you sleep better, the faster you will heal…"

"I can take care of myself perfectly fine, Stark." Apparently he hadn't gotten the previous hint.

"I know you can, doesn't mean you always should. I know where you have been, to a certain extend. I would have gone insane if I didn't have someone else to fall back on." He was clearly reminiscing some old wound, because his face was tense.

"I…." maybe it wasn't so much about him helping just Loki to heal. The god got the idea that some time, long ago, the mortal had not been able to save someone. A wound that was clearly still festering. Perhaps they were both better off with this deal. He would sleep better and Stark would stop looking like a kicked puppy. It was not a good look on the man. "I sleep on the left side of the bed." He finished his sentence.

"Oh come on Reindeer games. That is my favorite spot on the bed." He was back to being a whiny brat. Somehow it was a relief. "It is about helping me is it not. I thought it was a Midgardian custom to always let the guest choose first." Loki shot back, heading off towards his room.

"Do I seriously look like I follow rules?" Stark snarked back at him.

"Tony, Jarvis told me you were here…" The voice of Pepper Potts alerted Tony that maybe he needed to open his eyes. He had been rather comfortable in the bed. Somehow during the night Loki had slung his arm around Tony's waist and while they were not lying very close on the bed it still felt rather good. The god clearly was a possessive type. The sight however of Pepper quickly leaving the room made him get out of bed.

He found her in the living room, pacing up and down. "Pepper, what the hell are you doing here?"

"Really Tony, I had the idea that maybe you were a little more torn up about us breaking up but here you are sleeping with another man!" She was distressed about something, and for all his genius he could not figure out what.

"Seriously Pepper, we broke up six months ago and I am not sleeping with that guy….well technically I am but…"

"God, I thought maybe we could give it another go because I was missing you, but you clearly seem to have found some other form of entertainment." He wasn't sure whether she was talking to him or to herself really.

"Pepper, you left me six months ago remember! Why the fuck did you think you could just come back here?" He was getting rather frustrated with her.

"Because I missed you Tony. Because I missed your jokes and finding you in your lab working on some project. I miss…"

"You miss me? Pepper we broke up because you couldn't stand me and now you are back saying that that was all a lie!" Did she really think she could just come back whenever she liked?

"I didn't leave you because I couldn't stand you, but because I couldn't stand that suit of yours and the dangers of it!" he was surprised Loki hadn't come looking with all the yelling they were doing. Probably was hiding somewhere around the corner, listening in on the conversation.

"Guess what Pepper that suit is part of me! It is powered by the same thing that is keeping me alive, remember! You cannot get one and get rid of the other. It doesn't work like that!"

"Don't think I don't know that! I hated you for going on all those dangerous missions, but no matter how much I begged you would never stay back with me. Never thought about how much you were making me worry! God Tony, you went up with a nuke in space, do you know how that made me feel?" He hated seeing her cry, but it didn't change the situation.

"Then why are you here Potts because I am still the man I was back then! I will never back off when people need me to help them!" That was the cowards way, let someone else go out there and save the day. Someone else who had family that worried just as much.

"You know they have the rest of the avengers! The ones with real powers. Without that suit you are crushed,"she took a deep breath "but I am willing to deal with that again because I miss you more than I hate the suit. I need you in my life Tony. We have been together for so long." She reached up to touch his face, but he grabbed her wrist before she could get close.

"You were a great friend to me Pepper and I loved you once, but I am both Tony and Iron Man and I will not go through the motions again of you looking at me with hatred whenever I go out there. You either love both parts of me or you do not love me at all." He dropped her hand and turned away from her. For a moment she stood there without really saying anything until anger overtook her. She was just feeling hurt and lashing out and he could not stop that from happening.

"I hope you are happy staying alone then, because no one will ever love both parts of you." The sound of steel on glass alerted him of her dropping the key she had of his house. When the door slammed shut behind her he sank down on the couch. How did his life ever get this messed up?


	9. Insults and getting even

Loki wasn't exactly sure what to do. Should he go to Tony or leave the man to his suffering. He somehow got the idea that the only thing that would make Stark happy at the moment was a glass of his favorite amber liquid. It seemed the man would literally drown himself in the alcohol one day. Loki had nothing really invested in the emotional wellbeing of the mortal, but he did owe the man. He had felt the need to help Loki in a way because he had been helpless the other time someone had truly needed him. Yet the fact was that he had tried to help Loki. Whether it was for his own personal gain, or not. He watched in silence as the smaller man got up and headed to the bar. How predictable.

"There are better ways to put your mind at ease, you know." He finally commented and if he wasn't trying to make the man feel better, he would have savored his shock.

"Should have known you were listening in." Stark grumbled.

"I hardly could ignore your argument when you were being so obnoxiously loud. Not a very good way to wake up, mind you. I do suggest though not to use alcohol to forget your misery Stark. It's highly destructive." He did nothing to move closer, or give the man any form of comfort. That was not something he did well and certainly not something that would be appreciated.

"Oh really, you are the one to talk about 'destructive' behavior. You who tried to and failed to take over an entire planet because your dad did not appreciate you." It was a low blow.

"Really Stark, do not speak your mind about matters you have no knowledge of." The god warned.

"Then I suggest you do the fucking same!" it was surprising that the usually rather emotionally blank face, was now a canvas of hurt and anger, even betrayal.

"Really Stark, you think that in all my centuries of living I do not know what love and betrayal mean. I have loved and lost just as much as you humans have done. You have done your research. You have learned about the faith of my children." Why was the mortal being so damn difficult. He could already see the alcohol taking it's affect. Not much sleep and no food made it work it's magic twice as fast.

"Really Loki, you do not know anything about it because you have no heart." As soon as the words left Tony's mouth the immediate regret was visible. It did not matter to the god, he still had said those condemning words. He knew better than anyone that a drunk's tongue was usually the more honest one. Not even bothering to listening to the rushed apologies, Loki left the room.

"Shit, Shit, Shit." Tony cursed, the migraine behind his eyes becoming steadily worse. Why did things like this always happen to him. When things in his life seemed to calm down a little, another piece of it would be torn apart. He had pissed Pepper off, not that he regretted it as it had been the truth, and now he had an angry god added to it. Now that one he did regret. He groaned as he thought back on his words, they were cruel and unnecessary. Just an emotionally upset Tony lashing out at the first person in his vicinity. God, how he was used to that. He knew how to push peoples buttons and rarely cared if his words hit home, but this was Loki. Not that he liked the god that much, but he did not hate the guy. He had been through hell and was barely recovering and Tony just poured an entire bag of salt in every single wound and ripped open every single scar in one go. Sometimes he wondered whether it wouldn't have just been easier if he had died in Afghanistan.

Instead of pouring another glass Tony decided that maybe finding the god was a higher priority at the moment. He hated doing it and was terrible at it as well, but he needed to apologize. Loki literally had nowhere else to go and no strength to do it if he had. He was dependent on Tony to survive and it wasn't a great feeling being indebted to the man you hated. Somehow Tony was pretty sure that with his insults he had just made it onto Loki's most hated list. Maybe even number one. He faltered for a moment on the way to the god's room. Would it be better if he let the god stew for a bit, he still had his strength and Tony did not feel for another flight lesson off the building. The idea was thrown out of the window though as he realized he would never get the courage to say sorry if he waited longer. He would keep procrastinating until the wound was just a festering thing between them. Tony was very familiar with procrastination. The god wasn't in his room however.

"JARVIS, where is Loki?" He asked as he checked for signs that the god had left the building entirely.

"He is at the swimming pool, sir." He was pretty sure it wasn't possible, but somehow the AI made that sound like a disapproving mother. Like he needed any more guilt. He had expected the god to be at the bottom like the first time but he was instead sitting on the edge of it.

"What are you doing here Stark, forgot something you wanted to say?" The god was bitter and angry, which he had all the right to be.

"I came to say I…" Why was that word so damn difficult. The god did not seem particularly impressed by him. He was blue one again and small pieces of ice were floating near his leg.

"I'm sorry, okay."

"Why, weren't you just speaking your mind mortal?" The god bit back, and maybe it was his imagination but the room seemed to drop in temperature.

"No, I was trying to make you feel just as much hurt, if not more, as I am feeling right now. I'm a selfish bastard. I hate it when other people are feeling better than me." He shrugged, trying to make it seem like he didn't care much about whether Loki forgave him or not. Why he was doing it, Tony had no idea.

"I can assure you Stark, you did not need any words to make that happen." God, Tony felt like a downright jerk.

"I know, which is why I am apologizing." He really wished Loki would throw him out of the window again to make him stop feeling so guilty.

"It's not the worse I have heard human, now stop giving me a headache with your whining." The god dismissed him. It really didn't help with the guilt. Seriously, what had people told the god that was worse than having no heart?

"Seriously, what is your obsession with this pool?" He dropped down next to the tall man, making sure not to touch the water which would probably be freezing.

"You seem to avoid this place, and I like water." As if to prove his point the god made a few more ice cubes flow down the water.

"I thought your magic was gone? I don't come here because I hate large amounts of water."

"My magic is never gone Stark, but this is not magic but heritage." Soft snowflakes fell down from the ceiling. It was funny how something so pure came from someone so jaded.

"Heritage?"

"I am a frost giant. I am able to create every form of frozen water." The man didn't seem particularly proud of that fact.

"That's pretty cool, but aren't giants supposed to be….well big?" He waved away a couple of snowflakes only to have them end up in his hair.

"I was left to die, which is why Odin took me with him. I am the son of the Jotunheim King. I am very small for a frost giant." Really, Tony's life seemed like a walk in the park next to the god's life. It seemed only fair to give the god some information about him as well. He didn't really understand why the man was being so easy in answering his questions. Did his comment really hit him that hard?

"When I was tortured, they used to hold my head down in a tub of freezing water. Making me drown over and over again really. I don't like pools or bathtubs really. They remind me too much of that, even though I am a perfectly good swimmer." He was surprised when Loki raised his hand and patted his back in comfort. The soft pat all of a sudden turned into a hard push which made him topple into the pool. He came up sputtering, frowning at the smiling god.

"Now we are even, Stark. Never try to insult me again." The man slowly turned back to his normal color and the water stopped to burn his skin with the low temperature.

"That wasn't very nice." He tried to guess the distance between him and Loki. "And I will insult you whenever I like, Reindeer Games." He grabbed the god's legs and with a quick tug the god was in the pool beside him. The look he gave him would usually have Tony look for back up, but with his black hair in a mess plastered to his face the god failed to impress him. He regretted laughing though as a small wave suddenly made him sputter. The mischievous man really lived up to his title as he send another wave the moment Tony opened his mouth to say something. They were behaving like children, but Tony's thoughts were far from childlike. The god truly was stunning with his lean body and pure white skin. He didn't look so put together in the water, playing a like a child with Tony, and it made Tony wonder how the man would look beneath him losing all control. It was purely his looks, he still did not like the guy….but maybe he could tolerate him. Tony stopped thinking about all that when he got another mouth full of water. The god was going down.


	10. Egyptian boyfriends

"Sir, Mr. Fury is on line one." How Tony hated that man. He let out a satisfied noise as his back aligned with a pop.

"Alright Jarvis, put him through." He almost immediately regretted the decision as the loud voice boomed through the speakers, waking up a very annoyed god next to him.

"Stark, you better get your ass over to Central Park. The others are already on their way." Tony looked at the clock.

"Fury, you better be kidding me. It's seven AM. What villain attacks this fucking early on a SUNDAY?" He hated his life sometimes.

"Stark, stop smart mouthing me and do as I say! The information has already been send to you and don't you dare go to Starbucks first!" There was the sound of a click as the dark skinned man disconnected.

"It was only one time I did that." Tony grumbled as he got out of bed, grabbing the clothes he needed to wear beneath the suit. There really wasn't a necessity for a special outfit to wear the piece of iron, but the special material made it a lot more comfortable than for instance a suit would. All those buttons and such just got in the way and pressed into his skin.

"See you later, honey." He called out after the still rather disgruntled god. It was a good thing he had already been out the door, because there was the clear sound of a pillow hitting the spot his head been just a second ago.

The situation really was rather dire when Tony finally arrived at the scene. The monsters were nothing like anything he had ever seen before. If he had to make any comparison he would say they were like the Chitauri from the battle with Loki, but they seemed more human than those things had done. A lot more deathly too it seemed. On the ground Steve was trying to get people out of the danger zone together with Natasha. Bruce was hulked out and smashing every single thing that came near him he considered a threat. He wasn't sure where Barton was, but the arrows were coming from somewhere high as usual. Where had these things come from? He wondered as he blasted a couple of them off the building. They didn't have flying abilities it seemed, but they did climb with an incredible speed.

"Glad you could make it, iron man. Any ideas on who we are fighting?" Fury questioned him. He was probably hiding in that see through ship of his, high and safe up in the air.

"I have no idea. Where did they come from? An army like this doesn't just enter New York without being seen! Jarvis run a recognition scan against everything mythological." A few more fell to the earth as he flew between the tall buildings, shooting left and right.

"Really Stark? You want to find a resemblance between these creatures and drawings from centuries ago…that is just madness." Really the man shouldn't complain. He didn't have any ideas about what they were up against either.

"Still waiting for an answer on my earlier questions. How the fuck did they get into my city?" Damn, those creatures could jump. He had not been expecting an attack from above. For a moment he panicked as the added pressure made him drop down to the earth fast. He twisted around slamming himself back against the wall of one of the buildings. There was a sickening crunch before the claws that had grabbed him by the shoulders released there sharp holds. He tested for a moment to see how far he could lift his arms with the bended metal at the joints. 'Damn' he cursed as he realized he would have to be careful as his movement was pretty limited if he couldn't lift his arms entirely.

"What is Loki doing here!" Fury all of a sudden yelled. "Avengers, there is a new target with high level warning. Shoot on sight!" 'Double damn.' Tony spotted the dark haired man on a roof not far from where he was.

"Guys, do not shoot. We do not know if he is behind this and Thor will kill you if you hurt his brother without reason." Tony commanded, they would listen to him but Loki really had to get out of there now before they changed their mind. He landed next to the god, letting his mask fall away so he could talk to the god properly. He ignored Fury yelling obscenities in his ears.

"What the hell are you doing here Loki? You do know they will gladly shoot you, don't you?" The god however hardly had any attention for him.

"I came to help, for once. The magical signature cannot be anyone else…" He was scanning the buildings near them.

"Magical signature? Who the hell are you talking about Loki; because I'm pretty sure they soon will be shooting you for being behind this." A flowing language was all the answer he got for his troubles as Loki started making strange patterns in the air. When he finally finished he pointed to a figure on a building across the street. A strange looking man was standing there, looking at the ongoing battle.

"I am not behind this. Seth is. He knows I am here I suppose." Somehow the idea that other magical people would come for Loki did not sit particularly well with Tony. Though he figured that mostly had to do with the armies that followed.

"We are talking about this later, now go home." He sounded like an angry mother telling her wayward child off. "Barton, the building to your right. Shoot the man on there. He is the one that got all these ugly things here."

"You do not seriously think I will sit back and watch, do you Stark?" Loki argued.

"Come on Loki, you are in no state to fight. I have no need for you to once again crash on my porch."

"I am perfectly capable of fighting. He is here for me after all. Besides he is a god of heath and sand, his creatures hate the cold." He sounded so damn smug Tony had to remind himself never to hit a hurt man.

"Fine, do whatever you like. I'm going to help them." He flew off without waiting for an answer. "Jarvis, keep tabs on the energy levels of Loki and warn me when they reach a dangerous low."

Loki knew that Stark was probably right about going back and rest. The teleportation alone had cost a large chunk of his magic and then he had to break Seth's invisibility spell. While Seth was a minor god in comparison to Loki, he did have his own set of skills that made him a good opponent, especially in his weakened state. Not to mention their history together.

"Loki, what a pleasant surprise." He heard next to him. The god was rather handsome when he wasn't portrayed with the head of a Jackal (or something resembling that at least). Once upon a time Seth and he had been good friends and even something more. The mutilation of his brother however had made even Loki wary of his company. While he had always envied Thor, he had wanted to be an equal and not an only child.

"Hello Seth. To what do I owe this dubious pleasure?" He let green strands of his magic curl around his fingers, trying to make himself seem like he was at the top of his game. The Egyptian god would surely take advantage of his weakened state otherwise.

"Why the hostility my friend. We used to be so good together." While he may be in his human form now, the smile he gave still reminded Loki of the animal he at least partially was.

"With the emphasize on used to. Honestly Seth, why attack something as useless as this city? The despair in Egypt and the rest of Africa not enough?"

"I heard a rumor last time I was in Asgard. Grant you, I am a bit late on the uptake as it had been a few years for me since I visited, but I hear Sigyn has finally left you. So sorry to hear about your sons though, would have loved to see how your deviousness was put to good use in a younger generation." Loki gritted his teeth at the barbed wires of words cutting into his skin.

"You visited Asgard? Cloaked in invisibility I am sure, as I think Odin hasn't undone your banishment yet. Tell me Seth, killed any brothers lately?"

"That fool deserved it! Let's not be so hostile Loki, remember how good we were once. With Sigyn out of the way we can be like that again." The other man radiated warmth as he held out his hand to touch the other god's cheek. Loki stepped away.

"Sigyn was never the reason we didn't work Seth! You are violent and quite frankly an idiot. I do not sully myself with such bad company."

"You didn't seem to mind my company so much when you came to me whining about how Thor got once again the honor and glory. Remember how I made you forget all your troubles?" The lewd comment was intercepted by Tony as he landed right next to Loki, almost making him jump.

"You know, if you want to win an ex-boyfriend back it usually doesn't do much good to blow up the city he is living in. Just a suggestion you know. I don't think we have met: ex-boyfriend meet current boyfriend." Both gods looked at him as if he had grown another head.

"Loki, you must be joking. A human to keep you company? You really have lost your mind, my friend." The laughter that came from the sun kissed model stung more than it should, despite the fact that Tony was lying.

"Oh, really? Because that human was just distracting you enough to do this." Tony raised his arm and took a shot at the god who had no time to retaliate. The momentum it took for Seth to catch his breath and take care of the damage, the invisible shield he had been holding up to keep Clint's arrows away dropped for just a second. It was enough to make one imbed itself in the immortal's shoulder. A second later said shoulder and arm blew up.

"You, little…" Seth was not able to finish his attack on Tony as a large ball of green blasted from Loki's fingertips, throwing the god off the building where he disappeared out of sight to wherever he came from. He had protected that idiot of a human. Who on earth challenged a god? The energy that had taken to send the god back to his own realm had really drained Loki. He grasped the first thing he could find, which turned out to be Iron Man's arm, before he blacked out.

"Sir.."

"What Jarvis!" Tony groaned as he lifted the god up bridal style to fly him back to his apartment.

"Mr. Laufeyson's energy levels are dangerously low."

"No shit, Sherlock."

Loki woke up to the sound of yelling and the feeling of something cold on his head. He pondered for a second on whether or not to open his eyes and joining whatever discussion Stark was having with the other person in the room. His head was really killing him.

"Stark, he is on our dangerous criminal list. You cannot just let him stay in your mansion like a domestic pet." Ah, so the other man was Fury.

"He helped us in the battle and for the millionth time: He did his time! He's not being kept like a pet Fury. This is just a business deal. He teaches me about Magic and I teach him about technology."

"He can learn just as much about technology at S.H.I.E.L.D and we can run all the tests we want. Hand him over Stark." For a moment there was a silence and Loki feared Stark might just actually be considering it. He would not lose anything by handing over the god to his boss, he might even get a pat on the back for it. When Stark spoke again however, there was no doubt about what he thought about the idea.

"If you think you can get me to hand him over and let you run tests on him like some lab rat, you are mistaken. He did his time in Asgard and up till now he has not shown any sign of wanting to hurt us. I will not give you any chance of caging a free man. Try to take him from my house and not only can you count me out from the avengers, I will personally assist Thor in wrecking every single one of your facilities until he is found." Even Loki got chills from that voice. Who knew the small man could possess such strength. Once again Loki had the strange feeling of being safe in Stark's company. As the door shut behind Fury, he figured that maybe it wasn't just his subconscious telling him he was safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if I got any of the Egyptian Mythology wrong, I just used what I found on the internet....feel free to correct me if you like :)


	11. Peaceful silence

Stark looked at the unconscious man before him with a certain amount of trepidation. He had just willingly told Fury that it was either him with Loki or no Iron man at all. He wasn't going insane; really, he just made very stupid decisions. What had warranted such an extreme form of loyalty? Tony hardly considered himself a very loyal person, he had hardly been able to stop himself from cheating on Pepper. The only reason he had actually succeeded at that was because she had been his friend for so long and he wasn't that big of a bastard. So why defend a known criminal from not only Fury, but also the only friends he had ever made in his life that hadn't walked away yet? It took him a few seconds to realize he had been staring at the god and that said god was actually staring back.

"How do you midgardians say it again: Take a picture, it will last longer?" the god seemed highly amused with him.

"How is it that you have no idea how to use a cellphone, but you do know terrible expressions?" he tried to ignore the stab of guilt when he watched the god winch in pain as he sat up. He had told the man to go home, but he just didn't listen.

"Don't turn this on me Stark, you just feel slighted because I caught you staring and what in Odin's name is a cellphone?"

"Only the best invention ever, next to alcohol." He grabbed his own phone and pushed it across the table to Loki who looked at it with a childlike curiosity. It was difficult to imagine that the man in front of him was actually centuries older than him.

"One of your models?" He asked, twirling around the little machine and surprising Tony when he slid back the screen with ease. He at least had more talent with them than Thor had.

"There is only one of them and that's the one in your hand. I don't trust other phones." He let the god experiment with the phone as he went in search for some kind of food. He hadn't had the time this morning to properly eat and the fight really had taken it out of him. "Jarvis, what do we have that's edible?" he called out as he rummaged through the cabinets.

"Nothing you do not have to prepare yourself, sir. Can we please not have a repeat of the 'pancake incident'…sir." Tony almost had the mind to start cooking just for the sake of it, but Jarvis was right. He still wondered how the pancake batter had gotten on the window outside of the kitchen.

"Fine, can you order the full breakfast from Clinton street." After a few seconds of reconsideration he told Jarvis to make it a double. The god probably was even more drained than he was. A loud bang had him distracted from his quest for food though as he rushed back to his living room. As expected the thunder god was there in all his glory. He didn't seem to happy.

"Brother, what is this madness? When we set you free we thought you had learned your lesson! What are you doing back here in Midgard?" Tony wanted to point out that if he shut up he might actually get his answer, but Thor just kept on ranting. " I was with my lady friend Jane when I heard the news of the attack on the city. Are you working together with your old friend Seth to take over the city. Stop this foolish nonsense once and for all, brother."

"Could you so kindly shut that blabbering trap you call a mouth Thor, before I will make it stay shut and you will not like my methods." Loki cut in, his jaw clenched in anger. Tony hated it, but he knew the signs of PTSD when he saw them and the tense muscles underneath the god his skin, the eyes darting across the room looking for an exit told him enough. Thor got the message as he kept his mouth shut for a second.

"As always you do not think before acting. Do I look like I am invading Midgard once again? Unlike you I possess a brain and I actually use it." There was a certain nervous and jittery feeling about Loki his movements. It probably had to do with the fact that he was running on pure adrenaline.

"What are you doing at the house of the son of Stark then, Brother?" Sometimes Thor really was as big an idiot as Loki called him. Could he not see that the B-word was not tolerated by the other god?

"I am merely learning more about his technology and in return I am giving him information about my magic." It was funny how it had never been the intention of Tony or Loki to make this some sort of business deal, but it seemed to be their standard excuse for their association with each other.

"Is this true, man of iron?" the thunder god was looking between the two inhabitants of the tour, clearly confused at the turn of events.

"Yes, we are just helping each other out thunderbird. Nothing to worry about." Tony gave him his patented 'I'm awesome' smile, hoping that the god wouldn't ask him about whether he knew about Loki his punishment. He had always liked the blond haired man, but after all the stories and things he had seen on his younger brothers body he found it hard to look the other man in the eye.

"Are you certain son of Howard? Do you have any spell placed on you, if Loki has threatened you he will be taken back to Asgard and he will not be able to harm you anymore." Thor was right up in his personal space, trying to determine whether Tony was being honest. He heard Loki mutter 'oh for gods sake.' Somewhere behind Thor and if the situation hadn't been so dire he would have laughed at it. They clearly had been spending too much time together.

"I am very certain Thor, your…Loki has even helped us today." He swallowed the words he was going to say as the younger god would probably not like his use of the word brother.

"Is that true, brother?" Thor immediately lit up like a Christmas tree, beaming at his adopted brother. One look at said brother told Tony he had to get Thor out of the house and fast. The god was even more pale than he had been a second ago, the hands were trembling and clenching the edge of the couch and his breathing was in a forced state of calm.

"Look Thor, as much as I enjoyed your impromptu visit, me and Loki have work to do. So I will call you and make an appointment for a better time." Thor gave a few weak protests as he was literally shoved out of the door, but the refusal of Loki to look at him clearly got the message across. Tony waited with looking at Loki until Thor was nothing more than a black little dot in the sky. The man was a mess. He had sunk down on the couch and was clearly freaking out. Tony was too bloody tired to do this, really. Slowly he approached the trembling heap that was currently sitting on his couch. It wasn't until he was almost standing right in front of the god that he realized the man was muttering something. He lowered himself until he was crouching in front of the black haired god. He was less threatening this way and he was actually able to see Loki his face. Loki had twisted his hands in his hair and kept repeating the same string of words.

"I will not go back, I will not go back, I will not…" The sentence was constantly interrupted by shuddering breaths that seemed to travel through his entire body. How on earth was this the man who had been so cock sure two years ago? Trying to be as gentle as possible, as if dismantling a bomb or a precious piece of hardware, he made the god uncurl his hands from the dark strands of hair. He held them for a second, trying to gauge what Loki would do. Would he push Tony away or would he let him help him. When he didn't pull his hands back Tony dared to sit next to the other man. The shaking wasn't showing any signs of stopping, and the god was slowly withdrawing himself. Eyes unfocussed and no response to anything he muttered. It was time for more drastic actions. He placed one hand on the shoulder furthest away from him and pulled Loki in a strange form of hug. He had straddled the man earlier this week to get him out of his nightmare and he had slept next to him, but this felt oddly intimate. He was trying to offer comfort, something Tony Stark rarely did. It seemed to work though as the shuddering slowly halted and the gods breathing evened out. When also the muscles became compliant he grabbed a pillow from next to him and forced the god to lie down with his head in Tony's lap, where the pillow was lying. Tony had no idea how long they were sitting there with him absentmindedly running one of his hands through the dark hair. All he knew that somewhere down the road the god had fallen asleep and he still hadn't let go of the hand he had grabbed earlier. Even Jarvis didn't interrupt them to tell him the pancakes were there. All there existed in the room was a peaceful silence.


	12. A revelation

His hair was really soft. Tony nearly facepalmed himself for that thought, but that meant removing his hand from either Loki his hair or from Loki his hand and neither was an option. He had woken up an hour ago from the crick in his neck when night had already fallen. Apparently sleeping on the couch while sitting up was really terrible for your back. The god in his lap had started shifting, noticing a difference in his pillow, and to ensure the man would continue sleeping Tony had started to stroke his hair like he had done earlier. It was a rather endearing sight really, which made the genius doubt his sanity. While Loki certainly wasn't a threat anymore, he was sure to be killed if he ever told the god he was endearing. Scratch that, he would jump out of the building himself if he made such a declaration…ever. During the night Loki had not let go of his hand and Tony did not have it in him to pull away after the break down he had seen. He did not usually worry that much about other people. Pepper and him were no longer on speaking terms and all of his friends were more capable of taking care of themselves than he was. Yet Loki, somehow, needed his protection and that meant he was less capable of taking care of himself. So Tony Stark, bastard extraordinary, worried.

"Stark?" two, still very sleepy, eyes looked up at him.

"Hello, sleepy head." For a moment the god looked confused and with almost comical precision Tony could read the memories on Loki his face. There was another shuddery breath as the tall man remembered what had happened exactly earlier that day. When he tried to sit up, he pushed him down again. "You shouldn't get up so soon yet Rudolf. Not only did you use up all your energy in the fight you also just came down from a mayor adrenaline rush. Not a good combination."

Loki clearly wanted to protest, but Tony gave him a look that clearly said he would not win unless he used physical means. With a sigh the god leaned back again and looked up surprised when the genius started to stroke his hair again. "Stark, what are you doing?"

"It's soft, fluffy and it seems to calm you down." As if that answered everything. "Now, do you think it might be time to go see a therapist about your problems?"

"See a what now?" Right, Asgard settled everything with battles instead of words.

"It's a Midgard thing. You talk to this person and pay them shitloads of money to listen."

"Why on earth would I want to do that?" The raised eyebrows were rather comical. He may not have explained the concept exactly right.

"Well they can help you with your panic attacks. Don't say you do not need help with them, because I cannot keep Thor out of here forever which means he will see you have an emotional hissy fit and tell the rest of my team. Which means I need to explain why you look like a soldier with PTSD." He probably should use more tact, but Loki never seemed one to beat around the bush.

"I doubt there are…therapists?...here on Midgard that know about Asgardian culture." He had a point there.

"Well let's pretend I'm a therapist then. You are already lying on the couch and the tissues are on the table." He didn't know whether it was good to talk with Loki about everything right after his mental break down, but if he didn't press now when he was vulnerable Loki soon would have those walls up again and it might take weeks to get him to open up. Thor however would not take weeks to come back and visit Loki.

"Stark…" The god started to protest.

"No buts Loki, you need to do this. You can't continue your very long life keeping everything shut away. These memories will always haunt you if you do not give them some sort of place in your life."

"Speaking from experience?" The god drawled, but it was a rhetorical question. They both knew Tony had his own demons to deal with. He gave the man in his lap a look that told him he knew the god was stalling. The dark haired man let out a long sigh, which indicated he had resigned himself to his fate. Tony shifted a bit to get more comfortable, while trying not to disturb Loki his position. Something told him this was going to be a long night.

Loki didn't think talking about things helped much in this case. What's done is done, after all. Yet Stark kept pressuring him to tell him the story, and he didn't think it was just the imprisonment he was talking about. "What do you want to know?" He murmured, trying to relax as much as possible. Which actually wasn't that difficult with Stark running his hand through Loki his hair. The last time he had felt such an innocent touch he had been five and Frigga had comforted him after falling down a flight of stairs.

"Everything, but let's start with your ex-boyfriend Seth…unless you want to start somewhere else…" If the genius ever considered a career change, he did not recommend this therapist thing to him.

"No, that's fine. Seth is as you may know one of your Egyptian gods. To me he was more of a brother than Thor when I got older. Thor is a creature of violence and feasting. He rarely uses his brain and when he does it's to impress a girl." Tony snorted at that, but was quickly silence with a sharp look. "Seth, was more like me. Mischievous and a thinker." For a moment Loki was pulled back to the better memories of him and Seth pulling pranks on Thor and his friends. "I have told you about the disappearance of Magic on Asgard…the Egyptian gods do not reside in Asgard and practice different form of it, but it's still magic. While he wasn't always around, whenever Seth did come to my home we had the greatest times. It was such a relief to have someone who understands the delicacy it needs to wield magic and the rush of power when it goes right. Of course, I grew up and once I was able I visited Seth at least once a week. I knew Seth wasn't always friendly and a simple prankster, but he never harmed me. When things became more tense between me and the All-Father I visited Seth more often and eventually we did more unsavory things that are highly frowned upon in Asgard." He swallowed, it felt strange and made him vulnerable confessing these secrets. He also had no idea what exactly Stark his thoughts were on this type of sexual acts.

"Asgard doesn't allow gay people?" The man in question asked him.

"No, Asgard is quite like your ancient Greece, with the exception that no children are involved. That is however common among warriors and while I have fought beside Thor for many battles, I have never been considered one. Non-warriors however are not supposed to have any relationships outside of wed-lock. It is not a problem for most mages are eunuchs to focus more on their profession and the others are females. I am no eunuch nor am I female, but it was still frowned upon for me to engage in something so vile according to them. Which made me want to do it all the more. It was however nothing serious, for him at least. I never felt the need to find another bed-partner, but Seth was always more rebellious than I." Another shuddering breath and Tony his steady hand lightly scratched his scalp, which shouldn't feel so sinfully good.

"When word came that Seth had killed and mutilated Osiris, his brother, everyone seemed unsurprised at court. Osiris and Seth, have much of the same relation as me and Thor. The only difference here is that Osiris truly was a better king. He and his wife Isis were the divine couple, the ones that brought prosperity in the form of fertility. Seth is like me the god of chaos. He was banned from Asgard. The great All-Father was not in his rights to follow through with any other punishment. It's been years since I talked to him. There have been rumors though; him doing vile things to his nephew Horus, causing destruction in the land that Osiris once ruled. I thought he and I would never speak again, I however still recognized his magic the moment his army attacked the city. He may have betrayed my trust in him, but I did not forget him." Tony halted his ministrations for a moment, lost in thought, and to Loki his everlasting shame a whiny noise escaped the back of his throat. He ignored the smirk the genius threw his way and just considered it a small price to pay for the sinful feeling of the man his hand moving through his black hair. He truly was skilled with those things.

"Must have hurt, having the person so close to you and so much like you turn into something so evil." Loki looked away from Stark at the bright little lights outside of the window, but he knew the man didn't need an answer or an acknowledgment that his statement was correct. "What were those things that were attacking us, by the way? They really pissed me off."

"Seth is the god of the desert, he can create things out of sand. Never wondered how the Sphynx in Egypt came to be? Any sand really can move to his command. Once formed and ordered to do something they can move on their own accord. They cannot change their course however and Seth would have to turn them back into sand before he can change their orders."

"Somehow, that creeps me more out than your thing with the mind control." Stark muttered, which made Loki let out a startled laugh. "I'm serious, sand is literally everywhere, while you first have to actually touch a person for it to work. I rather try to avoid a stick than run away from sand monsters." The man shuddered beneath him, which felt weird. To be this close to the other man to actually feel every movement his body made. Had it been anyone else, Loki would have probably cursed them or ran away if he didn't have his magic. Safe, his mind once again supplied.

"So tell me, what happened in the last two years?" Could stark get more blunt? The question brought on a myriad of memories that made Loki seize up. Everything blended together until all was left was one horrific slideshow of bad things. "Hey, hey, calm down Reindeer Games. Slow breaths, come on. Breath in, breathe out…" It took the god a terrifying minute, till he was capable of normal breathing. He hadn't realized that him and Stark had still been holding hands and from the look on the man's face he was squeezing it rather hard.

"Sorry…I.." he stopped when Tony shook his head. The human breathed through his nose and flexed his hand a couple of times before grabbing hold of Loki's once again. "Just talk okay, you can stop whenever you want." Maybe he wouldn't be such a lousy therapist after all.

"The all-father immediately called a counsel-meeting the moment Thor and I set foot in the room. They spent most of their time calling me names than actually making a decision and eventually the all-father gave his verdict. Two years with my mouth sown shut in the lowest cells of Asgard. Without my magic of course. " That day felt like ages ago now he thought about it. "It is hardly the worst punishment you can get, but the lowest cells have no people patrolling the halls. It's a dark and rather frightening place to be and anyone trying to escape would need to go through the levels that are heavily guarded. Food is send into the prisons by magic. The first week I thought I would be going mad boredom. The stitches to keep my mouth shut hurt and I had no one around to have any form of social interaction. I'm not a person that enjoys large crowds, but the only thing to keep me company now were my memories and I'd rather have the crowd. I came to regret that wish when company did come. Asgard usually doesn't allow prisoners to be harmed too much. Especially not those with my heritage, but I had pissed off too many people. Though I believe some just liked the pleasure of taking a prince." He let out a hissing noise as Stark tightened his hold on Loki's hair.

"Sorry." The other man muttered. "Who did it?"

"I lost count after a while of who did what exactly….but I remember a couple of friends from Thor. They used to tolerate me because of him, otherwise I would have been shunned by them a long time ago. It appeared that they were done tolerating me." It was the bitter truth, but he knew that if he didn't have Thor he would have been alone in Asgard.

"Did Thor know?"

"I don't think he knew the extent, but word of their visits must have reached him. Guards see everything and talk even more." He tried to stay objective, but it hurt that his brother had not once intervened. Not once come down to see for himself. That truly told him how much the bond between him and the other god had broken.

"So Thor his friends did this to you?"

"They mostly did the flogging and stabbing. Only once did they…." He swallowed hard. "it was some sort of device, which I had to extract...after they had gone." It shouldn't be this difficult. It was just a memory. Just the past. "I…" why couldn't he form the words, why was he incapable of telling this mere mortal what had happened?

"It's okay, Loki. Let's just leave it with this." The god was surprised when the man underneath him suddenly moved. Before he really had realized what had happened Stark was laying behind him on the couch, one arm thrown possessively over his stomach. He had not let go of Loki his hand and he gave it a squeeze. "Let's just try to get some sleep." For a moment he felt uncomfortable with the man pressed so close against him. His mind was still set on the memories of rape. Tony however placed his head right behind his and he felt his warm breath ghosting over his neck. The smell that he had come to associate with the Midgardian surrounded him; metal, a spicy cologne and motor oil. 'You are safe' his mind supplied once again and for once he listened to it without doubt.


	13. Emotionally stunted bastards

Loki wasn't on the couch anymore when Tony woke up. He was standing at the window looking out over the city, one hand pressed against the glass. The sun was coming up right in front of them and it was a rather peaceful thing to watch after the extreme emotional work they had done the evening before. "I have shrapnel around my heart." He had no idea why he told the god that, but somehow he felt like the balance between them had been disturbed. A secret for a secret he supposed.

"What?" Loki asked with raised eyebrows. It was a rather strange thing to say first thing in the morning.

"There was a bomb, my bomb to be exact, which exploded near me. They could not remove all the pieces so instead they fitted me with a rather terrible version of my arc reactor. It keeps the shrapnel from moving. The moment this thing gives out they will pierce my heart. There was a man who used to be a friend of my father, who helped me with Stark industries when they died. He had been like a second father to me and he betrayed me for the little energy source in my chest. He pulled it out of me, knowing it would kill me, and left me to die. You already knew the first part, but I figured…" What had he exactly been thinking? Was he trying to convince the god he wasn't alone? Loki didn't say anything really, but somehow that invisible balance between them had been restored. A grumbling noise from Tony his stomach reminded him that they didn't eat anything yesterday.

"Jarvis, please order the same thing as yesterday." He called out.

"Certainly sir, are you planning to accept the food this time?" His AI replied.

"Don't sass me Jarvis, just do it." His back felt like hell. Which was to be expected but he still hated it. His couch was pretty damn comfortable, but not for two rows of sleeping in not the most normal positions. He was surprised he hadn't pushed Loki off somewhere during the night. It wasn't a very wide couch. He needed a drink, or a shower.

"I'm going to take a shower…just call me when the food arrives." He felt the tingly sensation in the back of his head as if he was being watched, which he probably was, and he had to suppress the urge to shake his hips. In the end he decided to amuse the god anyway and he felt rather pleased with himself when it earned him an unexpected laugh.

Loki felt drained. Emotionally and physically. His magic was depleted and he wouldn't be surprised that if only tried so much as conjure a simple image he would even lose his human colored skin. Oddly enough he did feel a little lighter. Something had shifted a little. Like the proverbial burning iron poker that was lodged in his chest had started to cool off. It didn't make him jump for joy or all of a sudden only see the beauty in the world, but it did make him feel a little bit more comfortable. Like his skin fitted just a bit better. And he had Stark to thank for that of all people. What had the realms come to?

He didn't dislike the man, despite the fact that they had been enemies at a certain point. He was snarky, cocky and not a peoples person. Basically he was Loki on earth, including the family problems, betrayals and hurt. It should irk him, it should make him hate the man. He was a monster after all, so a slightly different looking copy should not make it any better. No, he was wrong. There was something very different between him and Stark. Where he had chosen for destruction and chaos the other man had gone for peace and protection. He was still no team player nor would he go out and help the poor, but when it was necessary he would stand up for those in need. Would things have been different if he had not followed his path of destruction? He was too tired for this.

"The delivery boy is here, Mr. Laufeyson." Jarvis called out, giving him his much needed break.

"Do I need to get Stark, Jarvis?" He had no idea how this whole process went.

"No need, sir. The food has already been paid for. All you have to do is accept it." He seriously loved that computer. When he opened the door he came face to face with a boy no older than seventeen. He was smiling brightly, carrying several plastic bags.

"Hello sir, here is the food you ordered." He was already grating on Loki his nerves. Too much eagerness and smiles so early in the morning.

"Right, thank you for your services." He shut the door before the boy could say anything else. He thought he could hear Jarvis let out a chuckle, but that must have been his imagination. "Jarvis, let Tony know the nourishment has arrived." He placed the plastic bags on one of the kitchen counters.

"Will do, Mr. Laufeyson." The AI replied.

It took him a few seconds, but finally it hit him that he had used Tony instead of the usual Stark. It had just slipped through. Somehow he had never felt inclined to use his first name, despite the fact that the other man always referred to him by his first name. It felt like some sort of barrier between them. A formality that made sure that it was clear that they were no friends, merely acquaintances. So what did it mean that he had slipped up? Did he consider…Tony…a friend? Somehow that felt wrong, a confidant was more like it. Although one might argue that being a confidant was something a good friend should be, they even had their passion for knowledge in common…..argh. His brain did nothing but confuse him more. He needed more hours of restful sleep. Not just crashing on a couch in exhaustion.

"Oh something smells good, that place really never disappoints." Tony exclaimed as he walked into the room. Loki wasn't sure what to say to that, as he had no idea what 'that place' exactly was, but took the plate filled with pancakes with syrup gratefully. Right now he would eat paper if it could still his hunger. "So I was thinking; let's go to the animal shelter today and get a dog!" Loki nearly choked on the piece of food he was swallowing.

"Why on earth would you get a dog, Stark?" he exclaimed once the coughing subsided.

"I did my bit of research and apparently it helps emotionally stunted bastards."

"Who says I am an emotionally stunted bastard." He gave the other man a look that dared him to say anything.

"Wow, egocentric much? I was talking about me big guy, you see not everything is about you." Loki knew that this wasn't about Stark. The only involvement of that man was the fact that he was trying to help. He had however always had a liking for animals, might have been the fact that most of his children were at least partial animals.

"Fine Stark, let's find you your perfect companion. Don't blame me however if the dogs dislike you."

"Well before we leave you are taking a shower! I am not letting you anywhere near the outside world, smelling like that." While the god knew that he did need a shower he could not resist a last parting shot as he headed for his room.

"I think that is just your own body odor Stark, unfortunately no shower can make you smell good."

The car ride to the nearest animal shelter was…interesting…if anything. Loki clearly had never traveled in Midgardian style and had to take a while to get used to. Tony had to cough a lot that ride to mask the laughter that was bubbling up at the gods expense. He couldn't help it. The taller man constantly pulled the most comical faces when they hit a bump or when he heard the sound of a car horn nearby. He wasn't always good at catching his laughter and at the end of the ride Loki left the car with an angry scowl on his face. Storming ahead and leaving Tony to chase after him. For a moment the smaller man appreciated the look of the god's behind in the new grey suit he was wearing. It was just a simple attraction after all. Look but don't touch. They had really reached the building just in time as the grey clouds that had been hanging in the sky for most part of the day burst open. Large flashings of lightning and the hard sound of rain pounding on the roof made both men glad they were safely inside.

They were shown to the kennel in the back where all the dogs were. An elderly female walked with them, telling them about the breeds, the personalities and the dogs their histories. Tony looked at the taller man his expressions carefully, trying to figure out which dog he liked. He was pretty sure Loki knew this whole thing was for him and not because Tony wanted a companion.

"This dog here is called Prancer, he has grown up in the kennel so he is very good with other dogs. He is about three years old now. Very sweet character and not afraid of a single thing so far. He doesn't like being left alone for too long though." The lady explained as they looked at the small animal.

"What breed is it?" Tony asked as Loki crouched down at the door, sticking his fingers through the iron bars and letting the little thing sniff them.

"We aren't sure really. He has some of the qualities of a German Shepherd, but also some of the physique of a Jack Russel. He really is an odd combination of things." She was right he had the fluffiness of a German shepherd puppy, but he smaller than that and had a slightly sturdier built. It was rather cuddly thing to see. If the dog was already three years old, he wouldn't grow out of those soft looking black hairs.

"Why hasn't he been adopted yet, if he has been here for three years?" Loki looked up at the woman with those piercing green eyes of his. Tony just saw the woman get uncomfortable under his gaze.

"Well we did actually, have him adopted. One year ago to be exact. This animal shelter does once in a while spot-checks on the people that adopt the animals. Only in the first two or three months really. To make sure the family takes care of them the way they are supposed to….we can't tell just by looking at people whether they will be good owners yes or no." She didn't look at either of them, Tony noted.

"The people we had given Prancer to…let's just say they weren't suitable for taking care of animals and we took Prancer back. We are lucky that he has not ended up with any emotional damage. He still is a friendly dog. We really wouldn't put him in the adoption list if we thought he wasn't stable enough to make a good companion." The genius knew it wasn't her fault and thanks to their good work the dog had actually gotten away, but he really wanted to put the blame somewhere right now. Who could harm such an innocent creature? Loki clearly had the same thought as his fingers curled so tightly around the iron bars that they turned even whiter than they already were.

"We'll take him." Tony decided.

"Are you sure? You do not want to see the other dogs?" The genius looked once again at Loki as he held out his hand to pet the dog. "No this one is perfect. Where do I sign?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: It is really true. Animals help people with PTSD. Well according to the article at least.
> 
> For years, animals have been used with great benefit in the treatment of the aged and the terminally ill. Now Animal Assisted Therapy is benefitting sufferers of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Soldiers share a deep bond based on the belief that none but a fellow soldier can understand what is seen and experienced by soldiers. So when one of that small cadre suffers in a way that feels apart even from his/her companions, the sense of isolation and anxiety can be extreme. Helping soldiers who are suffering as a result of the horrors of war has been attempted through counseling, medication, and partnering with other military veterans. Nevertheless, the healing process for PTSD has continued to be prolonged and lonely. This explains why doctors are enthusiastic about the positive results they are seeing with the relatively new treatment of PTSD through animal assisted therapy.
> 
> So don't think I added it just as a fluffy extra :P. I will get back to the whole what happened in Asgard thing and such, but I just wanted a little happiness in between the heavy chapters.


	14. Come back crawling

Really, why did Fury feel the need to call a meeting at nine in the morning? While still half asleep Tony tried to find every piece of clothing he needed, but the darkness in the room made it rather hard. He got an angry hiss from the other man in the room, who had still been asleep, when he called Jarvis for the light. It shocked Tony how he felt no need to freak out at the rather domestic sight the two of them made. Loki was sitting up in the bed, with his hair looking like he just had sex, while the dog watched on from his position at the end of said bed. The only thing missing was a little kid to wreck some havoc on their sleeping patterns. He really should find this a lot more disturbing.

"Where on earth are you off to Tony at…." The god took a glance at the clock. "half past eight?"

"Fury called a meeting, probably about Seth. I think Prancer needs to go for a walk anyway. I'll be back around twelve I think, probably earlier." He had just reached the kitchen when he realized something big. Loki had called him Tony. Not Stark, not man of Iron but Tony. Had it been the first time? Was it just a slip of the tongue?

"Jarvis, has Loki ever called me Tony before?" If anyone knew, it would be his AI. He started his coffee maker, he was going to need it if he had to deal with the team.

"Only once, sir. He asked me to 'inform Tony' that your food had arrived yesterday morning. Is there any particular reason for this question, sir? Should I keep count of the amount of times Mr. Laufeyson calls you by your given name in the future, sir?" One day Tony was going to disable whatever it was that made his own invention so sassy.

"No, thank you Jarvis." His voice dripped with sarcasm as he grabbed his finished coffee. "Just direct Loki to the roof when Prancer needs to do his thing. I doubt S.H.I.E.L.D will let him take a walk in Central Park.

"Certainly, sir."

He got some surprised looks when he actually arrived at the meeting on time, which he savored. Sometimes they were too easy to mess with. He took his seat next to Bruce and as far away from Thor as he possibly could. It didn't matter that the man may not have known what his friends were up to, he should have visited the brother he so claimed to love.

"So, Tony….still got our favorite villain at your house?" Clint asked, as they waited for Fury to arrive.

"As a matter of fact, yes. He is currently playing with Prancer I think." Still easy to mess with.

"Prancer….please tell me there isn't another god with a horny helmet." Steve groaned. Tony was about to point out how terrible that comment sounded when Bruce coughed next to him, grabbing his attention. His skin had a light green color to it. Not a good sign.

"Listen Tony, I know how much you like to take everything apart to see how it works…but I agree with these guys that making a business deal with the god of lies and letting him stay at your house, isn't a good idea." He stayed silent for a moment, letting Tony think.

"Look, I know you guys all have a problem with it, but I have been living with him for almost two months now and I have not been killed yet. He has not even maimed me. Should I fucking point out that he helped us win against Seth?" he never liked it when people judged his decision, his father had done enough of that. He would do as he pleased. He was a friggin' billionaire, for god's sake.

"Which is exactly why this meeting was called, Stark." The devil had arrived.

"Oh, and I just though this meeting couldn't get better. Now you are here we can finally hold out tea-party." He was being petty, which didn't make him feel better. Fury opened the screens, showing them several pictures of the Norse god and the Egyptian god in a heated discussion. They even included an image in which Seth was reaching out to touch Loki his face. Tony did not acknowledge the little green eyed monster in the pit of his stomach. He knew the story.

"I don't care who tells the story, but I want to know what the link is between these two. If Loki is working together with this god then we are in deep shit. Thor, Tony, you know anything about this?" Fury looked from one man to the other, but the genius wasn't planning to tell the one eyed leader anything. He wasn't sure how much Thor exactly knew about the relationship between his brother and Seth. If he gave out information the Norse god wasn't pertinent to, he was sure he would take another flying lesson out of the highest window in his tower.

"Seth and Loki were friends when they were younger. My brother hasn't seen the god in at least two or three centuries, when Seth was banned from Asgard when he murdered Osiris." Thor explained. "I do not think my brother and he are working together. Seth his methods are too rash for Loki to join him."

"I thought they were pretty similar. Big army attacking the city and all…" Natasha put in.

"Loki may have attacked Midgard, but he did it for a reason. This attack was merely to create chaos without any cause behind it. My brother detests violence and chaos when it has no merits." The older god argued. Tony felt sick as he watched the man defend his brother, while he knew that not two days ago he had accused Loki of putting a spell on Tony.

"Let's not forget that he helped us find Seth and bring him down. If he had not broken whatever invisibility spell that man has, we would have been fighting forever." Fat lot of good that move did him, they now knew he was on earth and he was also still accused of helping with the attack.

"He could have had an ulterior motive or something." Clint argued.

"No, I heard parts of the conversation. Seth came here because he wanted to find Loki and get him to join him. Which Loki refused by the way." Take that.

"He needs to leave then." Fury decided.

"WHAT?" Tony yelled. " He did nothing but help us and you want to throw him out into another realm?" Maybe he should tone down the protectiveness. Natasha, Bruce and Clint were all staring at him.

"The fact is Stark, he brought a dangerous god to earth. Not intentionally, but he still forms a threat. Thor can you take him back to Asgard?" The god opened his mouth to answer but Tony was having none of it.

"No, I said this once before Fury and don't think I didn't fucking mean it. I am working together with Loki and for as far as I know he has done nothing wrong. If you so much as touch him to take him back to Asgard I will leave the team and pull out all the funding I bring into S.H.I.E.L.D. No way in fucking hell is he going back there!" His chair crashed behind him as he stood up.

"I do not think it is wise to take my brother back to Asgard. While he has finished his punishment there are still a lot of people that would like to do him harm." Thor was at least on his side in this.

"Not that there aren't any people here who wouldn't like to harm him…" Clint muttered, earning him a reproachful glare from Bruce.

"Stark, Loki is a threat which needs to be contained." Fury growled.

"Loki is absolutely no threat, Seth is. So you better start trying to keep him out, instead of the people actually fighting him!" he was not letting them take the god back to the place he still had nightmares about. That would be like taking Tony back to the cave he was tortured. He would not stand for it.

"I think he is right." Steve finally put in his say. "Loki, probably knows more about Seth and his powers than any of us, including Thor. We can use him." No exactly what Tony had in mind, but if it would make Fury reconsider.

"Fine, but the moment he so much as puts a hair out of place he will be taking into my custody." The dark skinned man left the room with a flourish that would make Severus Snape proud. For a moment a tense silence reigned in the room.

"So who is Prancer?" Steve always focused on the more important things.

"He is my new dog, which Loki has gotten rather attached to." He wished he could capture their faces. Finally Clint burst out laughing.

"Reindeer Games likes a dog called Prancer…."

"Did you pick the name?" Natasha asked, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

"No, I didn't actually. It is rather fitting though." Things seemed to be a bit more normal between the team members.

"It makes sense that my brother is attached to it, with Fenrir and all…" Thor mused. Well maybe not between all the members. A frown made its way on Tony his face, but he schooled his expressions quickly enough. They already thought him too protective of the god, if they found out what he knew…

"I'm leaving. Feel free to come by anytime you like….I'm sure Rudolf would love your company." He gave them his trademark grin. He wasn't far down the hall when he heard the heavy footsteps behind him. There was only one man that walked like that.

"Man of Iron….my brother is he alright?" Count to ten Tony, count to ten. He turned around to face Thor who looked at him like a dog begging for scraps.

"Listen big man, Loki isn't a fan of you right now and since I would like to keep my tower fairly in tact try not to visit him again." Vague and diplomatic answer. Who said he didn't know how to apply tact.

"I know that my brother still feels wronged by me, but I need to know if everything okay. I promised my father…" screw tact.

"Shut up, point break! I swear, if you say you care about your brother one more time I will find a way to kill you." Thor looked like a kicked puppy once again and also a little surprised. "Don't you fucking give me that look! If you cared for your adoptive brother only an inch of what you always claim, then you would have gone to visit him in his prison. You didn't though, did you? Not one fucking time! So if Loki feels wronged by you, he has a fucking right to!" He was breathing heavily, his hands clenching at his side.

"I do not know what my brother has told you, but my friends…"he didn't get any further as Tony his hand slammed into his face. There was a sharp pain in his hand and Tony was pretty sure he had cracked or maybe even broken something. Thor looked surprised but otherwise unhurt. Tony didn't care, it was the thought that counted.

"If I were you I would fucking stop listening to your friends and start thinking really hard on what you have done. Then maybe, if you came crawling back on your knees to Loki, he will forgive you. Better not count on it though." Thor seemed to crumble under those parting words, which gave Tony a small satisfaction as he left the building. He had another Norse god to see.


	15. Nobody could be that stupid

When Tony walked into the apartment looking rather cross and a cast on his arm, the only thing Loki really could do was raise his eyebrows. Well he had a few questions and comments in mind, but he doubted the genius would appreciate them with the mood he was in. Prancer was off the couch in seconds jumping up and down next to Tony, begging for some attention. Considering the dog had only been there for a day, it had liked them surprisingly fast. Loki was rather proud of the fact that the dog clearly preferred him….most of the time. With only a small nod of recognition to him, Tony headed straight for the bar.

"Sir, I don't think that alcohol and pain medication will mix very well."

"Fuck off, Jarvis." Stark was obviously in a worse mood than loki had first anticipated.

"Not a good meeting then?" He approached Tony with his hands slightly raised. It may not harm him, but he wasn't really in the mood to be punched. The dark look the other man gave him, told him more than enough.

"What happened to your wrist?" The glass must have been made out of diamond considering it did not shatter under the pressure of the genius his fist.

"I punched Thor." He finally confessed.

"You hit a god? You do know that never works out in your favor?"

"It was a reflex, okay." The slightly red hue on Stark his cheeks told Loki he knew exactly how stupid it sounded.

"A reflex to what? The thunderous idiot might act rash, I don't think he is capable of attacking members of his team. Did he still think I somehow have cast a spell on you?" The idea was really ludicrous. Never bite the hand that feeds and all that. The other man mumbled something that Loki did not catch.

"Honestly Stark, just tell me. I will not condemn you for hitting that idiot."

"He wanted to know how you were doing…and when he mentioned his friends, I may have lost my patience." Oh…well Loki had not been expecting that. He had known the mortal had been somewhat protective of him, but punching a GOD and not to mention a friend over him was a lot more than he had ever expected. How was he supposed to react to that?

"Stark, here on Midgard it might not be like this, but on Asgard you only protect the honor of your spouse. Defending me, according to our customs, has the same meaning as a public proposal." The wide eyes gave Tony a rather comical look.

"Look, Loki I like you….but not that much, you know. Oh god, what does Thor think now? That I want to marry you or something. Oh this is fucking bad….why the fuck didn't you tell me about this?" Oh, this was just too funny. He couldn't help it, he burst out laughing at the distress on the mortal his face.

"You are joking, aren't you?" the indignant look made Loki crack up once again.

"I'm the god of mischief, Stark. Of course I was joking!"

"That's just fucking great. I get my hand broken defending you and you decide to make a god damn joke of it." So maybe it was a bit too early to make jokes about it. He might have appoint about it not being the right form of pay-back.

"Fine, just let me heal it." The man however pulled his hand away, when the god reached out for it.

"No." he was really just an overgrown child.

"Come on, I can have this fixed in seconds. Why prolong your pain?" He did take away the alcohol glass that was on the bar though, just to make sure he wouldn't mix too much alcohol with painkillers.

"First of all; you are currently on my dislike list, which means I will not accept help from you for the next day or two, and second of all; you are still recovering from Seth and using your magic will cause a set-back." With that he walked over to the elevator. "See you in two days." Yes, he definitely was an overgrown child.

"Jarvis, he isn't serious, is he?" He questioned the AI. Nobody would be that petulant. He already knew the answer before Jarvis confirmed it. Stark would.

It was nearly midnight when Loki crawled into bed that night. He had not heard anything from Tony the entire day. The man had seriously vanished into his lab and not gotten out. What was worse that apparently Prancer took his side and had stayed down there as well. The only moment he had seen them was when Tony went up the roof to let Prancer do his thing and to grab some food on their way back down. He wasn't used to being alone in the room anymore. The mortal had always gone to bed at the same time as him to make sure the nightmares stayed away. It didn't matter if he was working on something, he would drop it the moment Loki wanted to go to sleep. He never really had to ask him, really. He would yawn or close his eyes for a little longer than necessary and the other man would drag him to the bedroom to make sure he got enough sleep. Would Stark stay downstairs tonight? He kept the nightmares away, but it would mean actually requesting the mortal. He was too proud for it and he could handle it, besides; they might have actually lessened in the past few weeks.

A needle glimmering in the little light there was. The searing pain of the boots hitting his stomach. The knife, sharp and poisonous, burning away his insides. The screams he could not let out…Sif, the guards, Odin, Thor. All the faces started to blur together to one big, laughing monster. 'you are worthless.' 'No prince of Asgard should be this pathetic.' 'No, Loki.'

Something wet covered his face, while one hand shook him hard. "Loki, come on, wake up! It's all right. You are not there anymore." It took him a couple of seconds to gain his bearings of where he was, but the labored breathing did not want to calm down. The wet thing that had covered his face turned out to be Prancer's tongue. The dog was sitting in his lap, clearly distressed. Dogs had the talent to know exactly when someone was distressed. Sitting next to him was Tony, in an almost identical state of mind.

"I'm so sorry, I fucking forgot about the nightmares." Oh, right. The reason he was feeling this nauseous.

"Just go back to that Lab of yours Stark. It isn't day two yet of my silence treatment." He snapped at him, petting the dog trying to assure it he was fine.

"Loki, I'm sorry. It was just I was having a terrible day and then you start to make fun of me, for doing something for you. You can understand that I was a little more than pissed off. I didn't mean to forget about our sleeping arrangement though…" Well if the man put it like that, Loki did sound like a terrible person.

"Fine, I am grateful though Stark for defending me. Now will you let me heal that?" He grabbed the arm with the cast again and this time Tony didn't protest.

"I still don't think it's a good idea for you to use your magic, but this thing is fucking annoying when working." With gentle movements Loki removed the white plaster from his arm, getting a small winch when he jostled the hand pulling it all off. The knuckles had some damage to them as well. He must have hit Thor pretty hard. The god almost regretted not being there to see his face. Placing one hand underneath and one hand on top of Tony's hand, he let the magic flow from his fingers. He closed his eyes, focusing himself on finding the broken bone and letting it knit itself together. Once that was finished he let some extra energy focus themselves on the little pieces of broken skin.

"That would be one awesome skill to have around whenever I test out my new suits." Tony commented as he inspected his newly healed hand. The god wasn't exactly sure what to do now. While Tony seriously seemed to regret his actions, would he leave the room again? He had after all been busy in his lab. Flashes of the nightmare remembered him why he needed the other man in the room. He shuddered as if he could get rid of the bad memories that way. He was still tired, but the adrenaline rush still in his blood prevented him from calming down entirely. He sometimes forgot how observant the mortal was. Two hazel eyes looked at him and Loki could see the gears turning behind those eyes. For a moment he seemed indecisive and then he moved to his side of the bed, crawling underneath the sheets. The god let out a startled gasp when he was pulled headfirst into Tony's chest.

"Stark!" He ground out as he tried to move away again. One arm however wrapped itself around his waist, holding him still against the smaller man's body and then the hand slowly moved up until it had reached his head. The fingers felt comforting and familiar in his hair and slowly the already disappearing adrenaline seemed to leave his body completely drained. He relaxed himself and wriggled around a little to make himself a bit more comfortable in the new position. It was certainly not something he was used to. He placed one of his hands on the arc reactor, because he seriously could not sleep with that blue light shining right in his eyes. To the mortal his credit he only stiffened for a second. He felt something fury place itself against his back. He was protected from both sides now.


	16. Think before you act

The trip back to Asgard left Thor slightly unsteady on his feet. It truly had been a while since he had traveled across the repaired Bifrost. Thankfully, the man he was looking for was right there.

"Heimdall, I have come to ask you for knowledge." The impossibly tall man gave him a look that told him the man was already aware of why he had come.

"Are you certain you want to have this knowledge? It can do a lot of harm if not treated carefully."

"I need to know."

"Very well, but think before you act rashly." When the images appeared of Loki's captivity, Thor had to do everything in his power to keep himself from destroying the Bifrost once again. How had this happened right underneath his very nose. He had trusted his friends when they told him his brother did not want him to visit. With the other god already so angry at him, Thor had felt it would help their bond if he abided to his brother's wishes. How could he have been fooled so easily?

"I warned you, sometimes it is wise to heed the council of your elders." He didn't think it was better if he hadn't known, but these images would haunt him forever. It was even worse than Loki's face when his sons tore each other apart. There were many things that Thor regretted ever doing, and most involved Loki, but this was one of the worst. His brother never had been an angel. He had broken more than one law in Asgard, but this was not something you wished upon anyone.

"Did the Allfather know?" Of course he had known, but for a moment he wanted to think that his father had not condemned the man he once called a son to unimaginable horrors.

"Your father thought it wise to sacrifice one man in exchange for the peace of Asgard. Had he defended Loki, the realm would have rebelled for him favoring his son and not allow the people what they felt was justice done." No wonder the man of iron had been that mad at him. His brother had no reason whatsoever to forgive him, or the Allfather, for their betrayal. He felt a strong urge to tear Asgard down brick by brick, but he decided to heed the words the guardian had given him.

"Take me back to Midgard, I will deal with father later." The guards usual stony expression for a moment seemed to change into something akin to pride.

"As you wish, my prince."

Something was pressed against him. The smell of wood, old books and leather made it's way up his nose. Soft hair tickled his chin. It took a few seconds for Tony to realize exactly who was lying against him. It took him a full minute to figure out someone was in his room.

"Thor!" he exclaimed, jostling Loki in the process of sitting up. Thank the gods they were both very much clothed. He didn't think the brother was incapable of bashing his head in before he could explain the situation.

"Thor, what on earth are you doing here?" The god sniped next to him. The body that had been so very pliant against his own was once again tense, but he did seem to be a bit more in control of it than he had been during the previous meetings.

"I will be waiting outside for an explanation, man of iron." As the blond man left the room, Tony groaned. Why did he have to get the blame for this? It took two to tango and all that shit. Loki refused to look at him, which didn't make the situation any better. While they had gotten over the fact of sharing the bed a while ago, waking up with your brother in the room would be awkward in anyone's book. Even if you were adopted and he wasn't really your brother.

"Hey, look at me. It's fine okay, I'll get this sorted." He placed his hand on Loki's shoulder and was happy to notice he wasn't shrugged off immediately. They had just gotten onto better terms with each other. He wasn't up for another fight.

"You do realize, Stark, that Thor just found us in the same bed….cuddling." okay, when he put it like that: It was fucking hilarious. He couldn't help himself, he laughed. When the god gave him his patented Death Glare, he held up his hands.

"Come on, imagine the headlines: Iron man and super villain Loki found cuddling." The affronted man gave a small grin at that. It did sound rather ridiculous. "Want me to talk to Point break or are you coming along?" for a moment Loki looked conflicted, but then he squared his shoulders and Tony found himself looking at the god that once had commandeered his tower without any hesitation. He wasn't sure whether he should be proud of him or feel slightly afraid of what might happen when the two gods clashed…in his tower. His beautifully decorated tower.

"Look Thor, whatever you think you saw back there…it's not like that." Tony started as he walked into the living room, where the god was pacing back and forth.

"You want to make me believe that you were not sleeping with my brother?" The other growled.

"Okay…technically it's like that, but it was really just sleeping not … anything else." He felt like he was sixteen again and talking to the father of a girl he had been caught shagging. One of the most embarrassing moments in his life.

"Stark, Shut up!" Loki ordered and for once Tony was more than happy to oblige. "Thor, what are you doing here? I thought I had made it clear I did not want your company." The blond man seemed to crumble under the vengeful stare of his adopted brother. Both Tony and Loki were shocked when he dropped to his knees, placing Mjölnir in front of him.

"I came to beg for your forgiveness, brot…Loki." Okay, now Tony was really surprised. "I just came from Heimdall, who informed me of what misdeeds have been committed to you. I want you to know that I did not know what crimes were happening down there. I feel ashamed to call those people my friends and that I believed them when they told me you did not wish my company." While Thor held his emotional speech, the genius only had eyes for Loki. The man seemed to be trembling and for a moment Tony thought the PTSD had once again been triggered, but then he noticed the gleaming eyes. Loki was trying not to cry. Apparently the relationship between him and Thor wasn't completely severed yet.

"And father?" the dark haired god ground out. Tony wanted to punch something when Thor gave them that forlorn look. The bastard had known and left his adopted son to rot.

"I will make sure the people who did this to you will be punished, they will not get away with defiling a prince of Asgard." Wrong thing to say.

"You think I need protecting Thor! You think that I want anything to do with those creatures! I am no longer a prince of Asgard and you would do well to remember that!"

"You may not need protecting, but I will avenge you. Even if you are no longer a prince of Asgard you will always be my brother and no one hurts my little brother."

"When will you get it into your thick skull, Thor! I have never been your brother! I was never one of you and I am glad of that." The black haired man snapped back. The tension in the room was thick and Tony was sure the temperature had dropped as well.

"You may not be my brother by blood, but we were raised together and I have never seen you as anything else than my little brother." Thor argued, getting up from the floor.

"Was that before or after you swore that when you grew up you would slay all the frost giants? Well, go ahead, because I am one you thunderous idiot."

"I was a foolish child back then and thanks to you I got to see how wrong I was. I understand you feel betrayed, but I never meant to hurt you." He tried to reach out, but Loki pulled away.

"Leave Thor, I will think about your request." With those words Loki left the room, leaving Tony and Thor behind with an awkward silence.

"Uh look, about earlier….I really haven't done anything…unsavory to him, you know. He was having nightmares and…" how on earth was he supposed to explain this.

"My brother seemed to be in your bed willingly, man of iron. If it is his choice, then I will not contest it. I thought that I abided my brothers wishes when I stayed away from him while he was imprisoned. I was a fool to believe it might make him feel less hostile towards me. I thank you son of Howard, for taking care of him in a way I am not able to." What on earth could he say to that? "I will take my leave now. I regret what I have done, but I still beg of you to make him see reason."

Tony wasn't sure what to think about all of it. Thor seemed genuine in his surprise, but the man had accused his brother immediately when he first set sight upon him in Tony's tower. He needed a drink. A very strong, very bad for him, drink.


	17. Never abandon a dog

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's not so much that we're afraid of change or so in love with the old ways, but it's that place in between that we fear . . . . It's like being between trapezes. It's Linus when his blanket is in the dryer. There's nothing to hold on to.  
> \- Marilyn Ferguson
> 
> I am in some email database that sends me a couple of quotes every day and I thought this one fitted Loki and Tony rather well.

Loki disappeared for the rest of the day and Tony figured that maybe he should just leave the god be for a while. Thor's confession was probably a lot to handle considering the god had felt so abandoned by his brother. He did start to worry however when Loki didn't show up in his bed that night. His bed…now that sounded just wrong. Granted he was attracted to the god, but that didn't mean anything. He was, after all, attracted to everything pretty with a pulse. Even if he somehow accepted the fact that sleeping with Loki was a good idea, the god probably would not be up for it. Physically he might be fine, but emotionally the man was still very much unstable. Ignoring his train of thought he got out of the large bed to find the dark haired magician, just to make sure he was all right.

"You really like the cold, don't you reindeer games?" He called out as he joined the man on the roof. It was almost one in the morning and the temperature had dropped considerably.

"It is in my nature to enjoy the cold….and Prancer needed to go." As if on que said dog came trampling through one of the bushes. After the tower got destroyed during their battle with Loki, Tony had made a new design with a large garden on top of it. It had trees, grass, bushes and a couple of those tables you found in the park. To be honest it was pretty much a miniature park, it even had a pond. No ducks though, those things scared the crap out of him. Loki himself was lying on one of the tables, looking up at the sky.

"Right, planning to come in any time soon?" The earlier just unpleasant cold was slowly seeping into his bones, making him feel stiff and numb.

"Do you ever wish back for the simpler times? When you knew nothing of the grey in between?" Tony took it as a no.

"I'm sorry Rudolf, but I'm not really following." He moved closer to the table, wishing he had brought a coat when Jarvis had informed him Loki was on the roof.

"I mean going back to when everything was black and white, good and evil, alive and dead." The god was looking at him with an annoyed expression as if he should have understood it the first time.

"I don't think there ever has been a time when things were like that, just a moment in which we refused to see the things in between. When I was making weapons, I refused to see that those things were just things that destroyed everything they came in contact with. I was giving men the means to defend themselves, but I didn't think about the fact that I also gave them something to hurt other people." Loki clearly was not planning on leaving the table in the next couple of minutes so he might as well make himself comfortable. He prodded Loki's side till the man finally scooted over a bit so he could sit beside him. "This is about Thor, isn't it?" The green eyes sharpened, but the god didn't look at him. He just kept staring at the dark sky that was littered with twinkling stars.

"You know, I'm not saying you should forgive him entirely, but he was being genuine when he said he didn't know what happened. He still calls you his brother, after everything shouldn't that count for something?"

"He may not have known about this….but he never stopped the Allfather from taking away my children, he never stopped any of it to protect me." Tony truly hoped the choked up sound wouldn't end up in tears, because he sucked at comforting people.

"Well, if I know anything, it's that leaders can spin any story to make it seem plausible and a good idea. Thor probably didn't know better and you were asking him to defy his father….look I'm not saying that he hasn't made any mistakes, but you aren't exactly mr. Perfect either. He still cares for you even after you attacked his friends. Such devotion is not something that happens every fucking day." He should never ever become a therapist.

"What are you exactly trying to convey here, because one sentence of you contests the other."

"What I am trying to say…is…" what was he trying to say? Was this relationship really redeemable? "It's just you don't have to fucking like him or forgive him, but learn to co-exist with him. I like this tower and I do not want to see it get blown to smithereens because of a family feud."

"And what makes you think I care about the fate of this tower?" He wanted to smack that smug eyebrow right off Loki's face.

"Right now it's the only god damn home you've got and you really do not want to piss off Jarvis."

"You do know I am not planning to stay here once I have my powers back. So I should just co-exist with my brother for the next day or so, after that I can destroy your tower all I want." Something clawed itself into his heart. Loki was leaving in two days at most… He should be happy right?

"You are really planning to leave the moment you can?" could he sound any more pathetic.

"It is the only reason I am still here remember. This was not some hospitable invite, I only stayed because I was not strong enough to leave, which I will be in a day or so if I do not have to save your team once again." What could he possibly say to that? The god was right this was merely out of convenience, nothing else. At least his friends would come visit him again. "I'm going back to bed." As he left the roof he missed the green eyes looking at him with a vague disappointment in them.

Loki wasn't sure if he should join Tony after their conversation. What right did he have to sleep near him after telling the man he would leave the moment he could? If he went back to the warm bed a few floors below him, he would be acting like everything between them was a strange friendship of sorts, but friends didn't run away the moment they could. Loki was a master of lies he could never lie to himself however, because otherwise he would be able to believe that he wasn't running. That he was just following the right path, doing the right thing. The honest truth was; he was terrified. 'I do what I want' had been his motto for as long as he could remember really, but then there was Stark. A snarky, annoying man with an abnormal low amount of self-preservation. Loki hated to admit it, but lately ideas that popped into his mind were followed by the question: What would Tony think of that? He was seriously considering someone else their opinions.

Stark was becoming a friend of sorts. Seth had been a friend born out of loneliness. Thor had for many years just been family, someone you put up with and liked because you grew up together, but their minds were never running on the same level. Somehow Tony Stark made every single other person who had ever claimed to be Loki's friend seem boring and terrible. The man was arrogant and annoying most of the times, but somehow he made the traits seem endearing instead of terrible. The witty comebacks, the crazy ideas, the arrogance and the energy all rolled into one big ball of Tony. The man had other sides that not everyone got to see as well. The caring side as he stayed by Loki's side just to offer him comfort during his nightmares, listening to him when he talked.

It was just impossible for the god to hate him and that scared him. Getting attached to people wasn't something he did easily, because the risks of failure were so much bigger with that. If he messed up whatever type of attachment this was becoming he would most certainly lose his footing. He had been crushed and terrified when he realized his father had given up on him. Tony Stark wasn't someone he had considered family for centuries, but he had the ability to make Loki consider changing for the better. He would never let his devious streak go of course, but straying from his path that was set on destruction was very much a possibility if he stayed in the mortal's company much longer. He didn't like facing questions he didn't have a good answer for. He didn't want to ponder on whether it might be a good idea to stay.

The stars above him twinkled merrily and he let out a sigh. Why in the nine realms couldn't he just make up his mind? He just wanted some clarity in the midst of the chaos. He looked up as the door slammed open and a determined looking Stark came rushing out.

"You can't leave."

"Tell me Stark, why could I not possibly leave?" Loki was rather curious about the reason.

"Because we picked out Prancer together and you should not abandon a dog." Really, that was his reasoning?

"Really Stark, you are trying to convince me with that?" Loki watched in fascination as the man picked up the dog that had come to beg him for some attention. He failed to see the point till he held up the dog to Loki. Those big brown eyes stared at him with so much adoration and joy that he really could not not pet him.

"You like that dog and Prancer likes you, so man up and stay because the dog wants you around." The dog might like him, but Loki was smart enough to read between the lines. I like you, so please stay. The doubt reared it's ugly head again…the god had never backed away from things because he wasn't sure about the outcome and he wasn't going to start now.

"Well I can't possibly…" he was cut off by a high pitched alarm.

"Shit. Your ex is back." Tony groaned. He put the dog down and without waiting to see if Loki would follow rushed off to get his suit. Loki shared a look with the dog, before following him.

The rest of the Avengers were alerted just as quickly as Tony had been and they all arrived one by one on the scene. This time there was no large army nor an invisibility spell. The god was waiting for them in Central Park on a bench eating a hot dog. The arrow and bullets that had already been launched at him by the super assassins never hit their target though. The park was deserted with the exception of perhaps one or two homeless people. It was two in the morning after all. Tony cursed again as he saw the delighted look on the Seth's face when Loki appeared.

"Ah, my darling. Have you reconsidered my request from last time?" The other avengers looked from Loki to Seth, having no idea what exactly had been said on the roof. The god's smile turned absolutely feral when he spotted Tony next to the dark haired man. Knowing Loki had next to no magic in his body currently to do any complex incantations Tony placed himself in a position where he could protect the god should it be necessary. "You know, your boyfriend really seems a little too protective. Does he not know that you could probably crush him if you wanted to?" Now the rest of the team was really confused.

"Seth, you cannot possibly think I would date a mortal now do you?" Now that one hurt, despite the fact that him and Loki would never work. No need to spell it out, you know.

"Oh Loki, I know to expect the unexpected with you. Still you are avoiding the question." Seth seemed to really enjoy his hotdog and it frustrated Tony that it did not matter what they did it would all just bounce off harmlessly.

"Really, I thought I had given you a clear enough answer the first time, but I will repeat it for you if you need to have your memory refreshed: We will never work." The god pouted for a second and it really should not look that good on anyone. Were all gods this insanely handsome?

"Aww don't be like that sweetheart." Loki literally flinched at the pet name. It probably helped that Thor was choking on his own spit and even Natasha looked a little ruffled by the exchange. Well Tony hoped she was at least a little ruffled, because this really was not an every fucking day occurrence.

Loki took a few steps forward till he was face to face with the other man. Tony was not jealous. He was absolutely not jealous. There was no wish to blast off the hand that touched the dark haired god's cheek. There was no reason to think that Seth was somehow taking his toy.

"You know it used to be so much fun." The man kept caressing Loki's cheek and for a moment the god leaned into it, then suddenly his hand was gripping Seth's wrist. A blue hand to be precise. It was fascinating and a little gory to see the arm turn black with frostbite and he almost winched when he heard the snapping sound of bones breaking. With a hard push Loki had the other god on his knees and Tony was once again reminded how strong these people really were. Seth was clawing at the hand that was holding him, whimpering at the pain.

"Don't ever call me sweetheart again." The other god threatened as he also closed a hand over the other man's neck. The team was exchanging looks of surprise, not sure whether to interfere or let the ex-villain…or maybe still just villain…do the work for them. There was the sound of a pop and suddenly the Egyptian God was gone and all there was left was Loki who was panting like he had just run a marathon.

"Brother…?" Thor questioned after a second of awkward silence. Loki responded as if someone had just hit him with something. His eyes were wide and he didn't look so sure about what to do anymore. It was the first time he was facing all of the Avengers together since the time he had been send to Asgard. Not a great memory probably.

"Well guys, this was fun, but we are going to go now…" Tony said, grabbing the god by his arm and literally dragging him out of the park before someone else could say something.


	18. Things would be alright

"Are you absolutely insane?" Tony yelled at him, ignoring the phone that had been buzzing in his jacket the entire time. Loki wasn't sure why the man was so angry. He had taken out the god temporarily, none of the avengers were hurt and Loki hadn't used up all his magic.

"What on earth are you whining about, Stark? The way I see it is that I have saved your petty little team once again." He watched on impassively as the other man took off his jacket and headed straight for the bar. He had only arrived a second ago as he had not the ability to transport himself between places and immediately had started to yell.

"What am I whining about? God damnit Loki, you are still healing! Somehow you seem to keep forgetting that! Why on earth would you walk up to another god like that…you are in no position to take those fucking risks!" The man was giving him a headache.

"What risks, were you not there Stark? There was no risk!" If he wanted to yell then Loki would scream just as hard.

"I know you god's have different ideas of battle, but in case you hadn't noticed; when you can't fall back on your powers you don't go and fucking annoy the enemy!"

"Annoy the enemy? No powers? Really Stark, you may be helpless when that metallic tin can of yours gives out, but I am not like that."

"No, I forgot, you can just go and admit you are actually a frost giant and declare yourself a wanted man in how many realms exactly?" Loki flinched. "That's right, I did my homework. Frost giants aren't that well liked in the other realms are they? I'm sure not many people know that the once so proud prince of Asgard can turn into a smurf! So don't fucking tell me you aren't helpless without your magic."

"Stark I know how to fight, if they come for me I can battle myself a way out of there! I'm not just a scholar!"

"How long has it been since you battled without the aid of Magic, do you even know how to anymore?" another glass filled to the brim.

"Why do you even care?" A sudden silence reigned in the room. That really was the sore spot here: Why did he care so much? Brown met green as they stared each other down. Tony gave out first.

"You're right. There is no need to care, you are leaving soon enough anyway." Loki wanted to take the words back, to return to the roof where everything had seemed simpler. He couldn't however and Tony was already leaving the room. An iron fist grabbed his heart and squeezed until he was sure that it was going to shatter.

"Prancer!" he called out, making the other man halt his quick walk. "You asked me to stay because we picked out Prancer together….earlier…"

"I know, but I'm not sure whether Prancer still likes you very much." The air seemed to leave the room. No, no, no…he didn't want to be alone again. He couldn't face his nightmares on his own, couldn't fight the demons on his own.

"Stark…I…." It was all in vain as the man had already left. Next to him a pillow blew up out of frustration. What had happened between the roof and now that made the man so angry with him. "Jarvis, can you show me what happened in the park." The screen dropped down, showing the whole 'fight' from Tony's point of view. The camera zoomed in on Seth's hand when it had reached out to touch Loki's face. Next to the image were the readings the suit had done on Tony's body at that exact moment. Elevated heart rate, release of adrenaline and muscles tensing up. It made absolutely no sense. At that specific moment there was no reason for those reactions. There was no army, the entire team had been there to back him up. To a hardened fighter like Stark it must have seemed like a walk in the park.

"Mr. Laufeyson, if I could make a suggestion…sir never really played well with other." What on earth did the machine mean by that. Suddenly it came to him.

"You mean he was jealous?" It would explain a lot. Jealousy was an irrational emotion. It didn't matter that he knew that Loki would never work with Seth ever again, he would always get possessive when someone touched something he considered his. He considered Loki his….well that was a surprise. What on earth was he supposed to do about that? He liked the man, sure and even he realized that there was some attraction between them. Tony wasn't really hiding it when he looked at him sometimes. The man had a reputation that was even cringe worthy for some of the biggest harlots on Asgard, so he had not expected the man to actually get jealous. He was flattered, but the meaning wasn't lost on him either. It meant that things could get even more complicated than they already were, because the other man was more attached to him than a friend (if that was even the term to use) should.

Tony was pissed. He knew his anger was not truly justified, but he had lashed out at Loki for making him feel this way. It wasn't the god's fault that he was so insanely attractive. Or smart, or funny, or emotionally just as much a screw up as Tony was. He let his head drop against the bathroom tiles, he had it bad. How had it snuck up to him like that? With Pepper it had just seemed like a natural progression of things, but how on earth had he somehow fallen for the person least likely to ever return the affections? It wasn't like he was really 'in love' but he could definitely classify it as a terrible crush. He shook his head, as if he could shake of the thoughts, and stepped in the shower.

It was nearly thirty minutes later before he decided that his muscles were finally relaxed. He quickly dried himself and pulled on a pair of jogging trousers. He was surprised to find Loki sitting on the bed, looking small and demure. He looked up when Tony closed the door behind him. For a second nothing happened and then all of a sudden the god was upon him. It was almost second nature for Tony to respond to the kiss and he would be lying if he said he didn't want it. Tongues battled and teeth clashed and there was nothing sweet about it. A whimper broke free from Loki and Tony let out a moan in response as they slowly moved backwards till Loki's knees buckled and he fell back on the bed. It took a minute for Tony through his haze of arousal that the god had gone stiff underneath him.

'rape, multiple times, torn muscles.' He cursed, how could he be so stupid. He moved away from the god, placing himself next to him on the bed.

"Stark what are you…"

"You don't want this, do you? Is this some form of weird payback for letting you stay here?" He tried to keep his voice as calm as possible.

"You were jealous today, of Seth…I'm no idiot Stark, I've seen the way you look at me sometimes." Tony felt sick.

"So why did you do this?"

"You didn't let me finish, earlier on the roof, I want to stay. You and I are not foolish enough to believe that prolonged exposure to one person will not lead to some form of emotional attachment."

"So what, you wanted to skip a few steps and immediately jump to the physical part, which you clearly are not ready for. God, Loki I felt like I was taking advantage of you just a second ago." Don't scream, don't yell. He really was trying to keep his cool as the other man clearly seemed shaken and unsure of his actions.

"I didn't know how else to make you forgive me." Oh damn, Tony really felt like the worst person in history. He even felt wore for Loki, because this was the only way the man had seen to gain forgiveness.

"I will not say I don't fucking want you, because I clearly do, but next time if you want my forgiveness you just try sorry. I'm the one who should…apologize… I shouldn't have gotten angry with you." A comfortable silence permeated the room and Tony took the time to just really look at the god next to him. His lips were slightly swollen and his hair was messed up. He looked way too good to be legal.

"Okay, let's just get some sleep because it's fucking four in the morning and I am beat." He groaned as he looked at the clock.

"You didn't seem so tired a second ago." For a moment all he could do was blink. Did the mischievous god really just say that? Loki seemed to enjoy his face because he cracked up, and in the end Tony ended up laughing along with him. Things would be all right between them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Oh damn, I rewrote that kiss like a million times and this was seriously the best I could do with it….I so suck at this….


	19. Like a blanket

The day was pretty boring for Loki so far. Stark had been jittery the entire night, until Loki finally told him to get on with whatever idea was stuck in his head because he wouldn't get any sleep this way. He could not understand how the mortal could actually be up for at least twenty four hours straight and then have enough energy to work on some project. After the laughter had subsided Tony had crawled into the bed and patted the spot next to him as if it was normal, which to them it actually was. He had fallen asleep fairly quick after that, exhausted from the emotional upheaval. He was however awakened about two hours after that by the other man tossing and turning, dragging the blankets to his side of the bed. It was almost comical how happy Stark had looked when he had told him to get lost and not get back until he finished his work. Loki refused to think about the way he would feel a little warmer when he thought about how Tony had given up his work to make sure Loki could sleep.

The dog had been in an awful mood the entire day. Loki had taken him to the roof to let him do his thing and play with it a little, but after it had emptied it's bladder it had sat down by the door wanting to go back inside. He had not complained about it as the air had been humid and stifling, but usually the dog was a little more active than this. It ate it's food normally though so Loki did not worry, too much. Not having anything to do really than either read one of Stark's books or play with the tablet, the god decided to watch a movie. He wasn't exactly sure which movies were good or how to put one on so he just called out to Jarvis to give him one of Tony's favorites. Maybe he would understand some of those blasted references the man sometimes made. Something called 'the dead poets society' started and within minutes Loki was totally engaged in the movie.

"BANG!" A loud rumble tore through the building as the thunder raged outside. Loki would have liked to say he was not trembling, nor did he look over his shoulder every time to see if Thor had arrived. He wasn't ready for a confrontation after last night. While things between him and Tony had certainly eased, he could still remember rather clearly the panic that had ceased him the moment he felt the other man lean over him. While physically he was almost entirely healed, with the exception of some scar tissue where poison had been used, he clearly had enough things that could trigger a relapse. Something soft and wet nudged his hand and Loki almost hit the roof in shock. It turned out to be Prancer's nose. The dog looked just as distressed as him, just like he had done when he and Tony had awakened him from that nightmare.

"It's okay." He murmured as he petted the dog on its head. Paw by paw the dog slowly moved itself until it was sitting in Loki's lap and try as he may he could not deny that the dog gave him some comfort. "It's okay." He repeated again, but he wasn't sure who exactly he was trying to convince. The fur was soft and warm beneath his fingers as he petted the dog. He tried to focus on the movie once again and ignore the storm raging outside.

"Loki is everything alright up here?" Tony called out as he entered the living room. He had been in the soundproof lab and had not realized it had been storming outside until Jarvis notified him of some damage it was causing to the garden on the roof. It had no use however to go out in this weather and try to fix things, but he was pretty sure the god in his house could use some moral support. He wasn't even sure if the dog was good with thunderstorms. Most dogs hated them, if he remembered the information he had looked up correctly.

He found the god sitting on the couch, hugging Prancer close to him. With the way he was holding the dog Tony was pretty sure Loki had no idea how tense he seemed. The dog however seemed to have no problem with the death grip and only looked at him as he entered the room. Normally he would get up and greet him with a wagging tail and a small bark of pleasure. The dog clearly understood who needed him more at the moment.

"…all the time he is mumbling, mumbling truth. Like a blanket that always leaves your feet cold. You push it, stretch it, it will never be enough, you kick at it, beat it, it will never cover any of us. From the moment we enter crying to the moment we leave dying, it will just cover your face, as you wail and cry and scream."

Tony likes this part of the movie the most. The moment that the small and silent Todd Anderson shows them that he is just as capable, if not better, as any of them. Looking back at Loki he realizes that the god seems to like the part as much as Tony did, but the trembling hands and the slight shaking of the shoulders betrays the fact that he is still listening with half an ear at least to the storm. That is just a waste of movie. Grabbing one of the decorative blankets at the end of the couch he settles himself next to the god. Reaching up he places his arm slightly awkwardly behind Loki, stroking his hair. Somehow that always calmed the man next to him and this seemed to be no different. Within minutes Loki's head is dropped on Tony's shoulder and the dog is curled between them underneath the blanket. If Jarvis after the movie finishes turns down the light to let the two men sleep a little longer, well the computer was not designed to tell anyone thing they did not ask for….often.

"Well, that was surprising with Seth." Banner commented as he took a seat next to Clint. They had called an emergency meeting the moment Loki and Tony had made their exits for later that day. Now after a couple of hours of sleep they were all seated in the conference room, with the exception of Fury. Whatever Tony was doing, the man was better to be kept out of the loop for as long as possible. They owed iron man that much.

"I do not know what has happened to the brother I once knew." Thor told them miserably. Of all the people he had been the most shocked at the discovery that Seth and Loki had once been intimate. Even he had not missed the clues the Egyptian god had dropped.

"Well, we can at least be sure they aren't working together." Natasha was an expert in reading between the lines, so at least they could be certain that the whole episode hadn't been a set-up by Loki.

"I still can't believe it…I mean Loki seriously broke his arm…" While Thor had been mostly shocked that his brother had been in a relationship with Seth, Rogers was still rather shocked about the fact that it had been two men. He wasn't really homophobic, but his mind was still in a time where two men flirting openly was not okay. It took him a while to get back up to speed. Steve would roll with the punches though, be prepared for anything and all that.

"I fear my brother may have caused himself more problems by hurting Seth in such a matter. He will be out for revenge now."

"Well no offence, but I was under the impression that Loki was pretty used to fighting with his ex-boyfriend." Clint got a chorus of agreements.

"That may be so, but Seth is a heinous creature. He will go after those that Loki cares the most about instead of fighting Loki outright. He knows my brother is too strong an opponent for him."

"So what, he will be going after the tesseract? Your brother does not look very impressive when it comes to fighting though." Of course to Steve most people did not look very impressive, but during the fight two years ago Loki had kept to the background most of the time.

"My brother does not care for the tesseract as much as he cares for his children. I fear I must go to the All-father and request protection for Fenrir. You would do well to not underestimate my brother, he may be a sorcerer, but he battled beside me for many centuries."

"His children? As in the myths are true?" Bruce had choked on his drink, which was now splattered across the table as he tried to get his questions out.

"Of course, Hell will be safe for Seth will never enter her realm unless he dies. Jormungand has not been seen since he was born and has hardly any connection to Loki, even though I am sure that Loki will defend him should Seth select him. Sleipnir is in Asgard and therefore well protected. The only one he can hurt without risk for himself would be Fenrir, though he must be of an impressive size now."

"Wait, I thought Loki had five children, and what are you talking about. Impressive size?" Steve questioned as he tried to recall his memories of the Nordic myths he had read right before the battle with the Chitauri.

"If the myths are correct, as Thor just confirmed, his other two sons were charged for their fathers misdeeds. One of them was turned into a wolf and tore the other one apart. It is said that the surviving one was driven mad with guilt. Sleipnir is the eight legged horse, Hell is his daughter who guards a realm of death people, Jormungand is a snake who has been living in the deepest part of our oceans and Fenrir is a wolf who is held captive on an island. Did I get anything wrong?" The god shook his head at the doctor. For a moment there was a silence.

"You have got to be kidding me. Your brother actually father children….I'm surprised there were women willing enough to…" Barton was silenced by a smack to the back of his head.

"Actually, if the myths are right Loki was the one giving birth to some of the children." Once again a nod in confirmation.

"Uh…Loki is male right…"

"Yes, son of Barton, Loki is male. He is however also a creature of magic and of Jotünheim and can therefore change his appearance." Again a silence.

"Why is Fenrir held captive?" all the avengers turned to look at Thor at the Black Widow her question.

"Well there was a prophecy he would kill All-father someday. To make sure he would never be able to bring around Ragnarök they had dwarfs make ropes. Dwarfs are very skilled at their profession and the ropes are unbreakable. Once Fenrir was separated from my brother they challenged him to try and break the bonds that now still hold him captive. To make sure my brother would not try to free his son, the island where he is being held is shrouded in magic. Seth however is not from our realm and has different ways of searching for things. He might be able to find Fenrir."

"How long has he been held on that island? Is there any chance that Seth might be able to use him against us? If he really is as strong and big as you say he is he would probably be able to cause the same damage as Bruce can in his Hulk-state." Steve was in thinking mode now.

"He has been on the island since he was a week old. He may not have been in contact with Loki for that time, but if he is anything like my brother he is devious and powerful. The only way of stopping Fenrir would be to try and let Loki try and reason with him. I fear that no mortal power will be able of withstanding him and us Aesirs would only anger him further for what we have done." The avengers all pulled various faces as they contemplated the information just given to them. A child taken from its father. A monstrous dog only stoppable by the man who had left the city in rubble the last time he had been there. They were not pleasant thoughts.

"How fast can you get to Asgard to request more protection?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I left the lines of the teacher out of the poem despite the fact that I love Robin Williams's performance in it. I just felt it would sound better that way, considering not everyone knows the scene.. Here is the link for the people that do not know it and want to see it anyway: www .youtube watch?v=FoCgROXHE8o you need to go to 11:35 for the start of the poem.


	20. Do not trust

Fenrir let out a whimper as he noticed the approaching figure. After years of solitude the presence was certainly a surprise, but also very much a threat. His honed senses prickled as the handsome man stepped forward, hands raised in surrender. Apparently his size made the unknown man reconsider his idea, which was something the wolf enjoyed a lot. He may have been tied to this island and incapable of leaving the god's presence if the god decided to stay, but he at least made the man fear him.

"Easy there boy, I have come to set you free." Set him free? He had been held captive for decades now, why was he being released? "I want to take you to your father." His ears perked up at that. Of all the contact he had missed over the years he missed that of his father the most. When he was taken it had been the only real care he had known. Yet all his senses told him not to trust the offer. Putting all his skills to use, he changed himself into a more human form. His face still had a rather pointed quality, and his movements had a certain animal quality to it. He was also still very much chained as golden bands wrapped themselves around his arm.

"Who are you, and why offer me this?" He demanded from the surprised companion.

"So you do have your father's skills…" The man murmured. "I am Seth, a friend of your father. He has been hurt by Asgard and his dying wish is for you to see him. If I break your chains, will you come with me?"

Fenrir looked down at the gold cable that disappeared into the ground of the island. He could move around as much as he wanted to, but the chain would always follow him. He had wanted to leave the island more than anything, but the thought of joining the gods of Asgard again and the real world out there made him doubtful. His Island had been where he grew up and it was shrouded in Magic. He was safe here from prying eyes. Yet, his father had asked for him…Should he trust this Seth, or not?

"Father, I have come to speak with you." Thor called out as he dropped in front of the throne. Odin regarded his son thoughtfully for a moment and then he got the sign to rise. "I want to have Fenrir better protected. Seth is out to hurt Loki and if he got to Seth…"

"My son, why would Seth use Loki's bastard son against him. He surely knows that Loki has not seen him since the day he was taken away." Odin waved his hand for another adviser to step forward with a piece of paper to sign and for a moment Thor wished he could smash his hammer on the floor, to just make him listen.

"Loki has never given up on his children, father. Fenrir is his blood and he will defend him regardless of consequence." Could the man not see that it did not matter what crimes his son might commit or had committed, he would always be Loki's son.

"Fenrir has been kept on that Island, shrouded in magic, for the past three centuries and you think a demi-god of hardly any standing can find it? Do not worry son, Fenrir will outlive his days there." Another paper signed. Another dismissal.

"Did you know?" He knew that he should not question his All-fathers decisions, but he needed to know whether his own father would lie to him.

"Did I know what, Thor?"

"About what happened to Loki in our own prison." He growled out. Odin looked at him and he knew he was trying to see how much Thor was exactly aware of. Two could play that game though and he held his face just as impassive as Loki used to do.

"Leave us." The older man called out. The room emptied out immediately, leaving father and son standing face to face. "I knew about it, yes. I wanted no part of it, but stopping it would cause a disruption of the peace in Asgard and the other realms. It was a difficult choice. One that I made two years ago and still feel weighing on my conscience."

"You left your son and my brother to the hands of people that had nothing but malicious intend towards him. Giving him no fighting chance against every injustice done upon him?" He didn't think he had ever felt so angry towards his father, not even after the banishment.

"I did it for the sake of Asgard and all the other realms. Loki was nothing but a troublemaker and if this is the way he learned, then so be it. I did not want for him to be so gravely hurt, but the others had their own scores to settle with him. If I had put an end to it, I would have needed to keep him locked up for the rest of his life!"

"Did you visit him? Did you send him help from the sickbay? Why did you not tell me what was happening to my brother!" Thor didn't care if he was disgracing his forefathers by yelling to the man before him. He wanted the truth and no one was going to stop him from getting it.

"I could not visit Loki, I had other matters that needed my attention and he would not have wanted me there. If I had sent him help they would have hurt him twice as much the second time and this outburst is exactly why it was kept from you! You would have tried to interfere and be the noble prince, when your actions would only cause the realm harm." How had he ever called this man a father.

"I have seen you do vile things father and I should have spoken up when you attacked Loki's children without good cause, but I always thought that you meant to do good. That is was for Loki's own protection. This however is not the behavior fit for a king. Family always comes first to the throne! You have left my brother at their mercy for your own vanity and pride. You could have stopped this and put an end to any of the rebellion that would follow, but you would rather sacrifice your son than get a blemish on your title. You are not worthy to be king and you are not worthy to call us your sons." With those words he left his father in the hall, ignoring the calls for him to come back. He would talk to his friends later, but now he just wanted to go back to earth. To Lady Jane where he could forget all his troubles for a minute.

He didn't get very far though, as one of the guards came rushing through the hall nearly knocking him over.

"My good man, what has you in such a rush?" He questioned as the man took a quick bow for his prince.

"An escape sir. Fenrir has left his island and is headed for Midgard, my lord." He rushed away quickly and Thor let out a few colorful curses. They were already too late. He could only hope he could reach Midgard in time.

"Tony you need to come in and you better bring Loki." Natasha called franticly over the phone. Well Natasha her idea of frantic was a slight tilt to her voice.

"What's so urgent?...and since when is Loki part of the team?" he put away the few pieces he had been working on and headed for the platform upstairs.

"You can better not tell Loki this in case he goes lunatic before he gets here, but Seth is here and he brought what appears to be your boyfriend's son." Tony cursed as he hung up on Natasha, getting upstairs even quicker than he had thought humanly possible. The god he was looking for was sitting on the couch reading a book.

"Come on Loki, we have a job to do." He was already halfway suited up when the dark haired man got off the couch.

"What's the hurry, Stark?...and why am I involved?" He frowned at him and Tony wanted to yell at him for taking his time. The coordinates that Jarvis gave didn't surprise him much, it seemed Seth had a fondness for Central Park. Must be the scenery.

"Look Loki, just promise me you will not do some weird panic attack that will end up with you getting killed…" The god obviously did not seem to like where it was going as he gave him a death glare.

"Start talking Stark and I will then decide what I will or will not do." He grabbed one of the god's hands.

"Seth has Fenrir with him. I don't know how, but I can guess the why…" The god tried to jerk free to probably disappear on him, but Tony held on fast. "Trust me Loki, I'm with you on this. We will get him back here safely. Just promise me that you will not go off on your own; we are a team." The slow nod was all the confirmation he needed before he took off with the god tucked against him.

Loki was pretty sure that they had beaten whatever record time there was for getting to the park. He refused to take time to catch his breath or take care of the dizziness; he just needed to get to his son. He was surprised to find him in his human form, bound tightly by magical chains and a muzzle around his mouth. With his green/blue eyes, pale skin and black hair he was a pretty good copy of Loki. He just was so much younger. In Asgardian terms he was still a child. Seth was grinning manically, pulling at the kid's hair till his throat was exposed and pressing an impressive dagger against it. To his sons credit he did not once flinch and only glared murderously at his captor. It was such a shock seeing the young man his baby had become.

"Seth, let him go this is between you and Loki." Tony called out from his side, he had almost forgotten the man was here. 'We are a team' he needed to trust the man. He didn't dare to take his eyes from the form of his son, but the sounds he heard coming from the rest of the avengers he got the impression they didn't like the situation any more than he did.

"I thought he was a huge wolf….this is just a boy." Clint whispered to Banner, who was looking greener by the second. Loki was surprised when Tony answered the question.

"Loki can change his shape, I am guessing his son inherited that ability." They were all waiting for something to happen. For Seth to make the bargain.

"That's right, he is very much like you Loki. So very handsome and talented. You know he still speaks seven different languages even though he has been held in isolation for centuries. Such a waste of good blood you know." A small drop of the red liquid trailed its way down the boy's ivory throat as the dagger pressed a little harder.

"What are your demands, Seth?" Loki called out, repressing the feral growl at his boy's discomfort.

"Demands? I don't want anything from you Frost Giant! I just want to see you suffer like you made me suffer!" Clearly the Egyptian god had gone rather insane during his own banishment and punishment.

"You think that killing my son is a fair trade for breaking your arm?" He sounded hysterical, but he really didn't care. The situation called for it. "I should have killed you when I got the chance!"

"You should have, but then again I found your son for you. What do you think I should do with him? Send him to another place where he can be isolated? I heard Jotünheim is beautiful this time of year." Jotünheim would mean an immediate death for Fenrir if he was incapable of changing. The magic bounds kept him from doing so and Loki was certain the god would not take them off before sending the boy to his death.

"You son of a bitch. You would hurt an innocent child over a feud?"

"Innocent? Loki could never produce anything more than something evil!" for the first time he saw the boy flinch at the comment. So young and already condemned by his father's name.

"That is exactly where you are wrong. Everyone has something pure in them and no child is born evil. Let the boy go Seth and we might consider letting you live." Bless Tony Stark for being there.

"If I die I will take the boy down with me. You think he would be happy to see Hell again Loki? They must have some catching up to do." The sound that came from the man's throat was inhuman. He felt Stark lean into him and even if he felt unable to focus, he knew that this would be important.

"I can get a clear shot in his shoulder if you can get his shield to stop existing. It will not kill him but you need to get Fenrir clear out of there before Seth is back up his feet alright. We will take care of the rest." Trying not to seem too exited at the chance of getting his boy back, Loki started to move his fingers in familiar patterns, while Tony tried to keep the god distracted. It felt like eternity as the small bullet shot of towards the Egyptian god who caught on to late that his shield had been disabled. The force with which it penetrated the shoulder made Seth fall backwards letting go of Fenrir, but slicing his neck further open as he tumbled. Within seconds Loki had pulled him out of the immediate danger zone and healed his neck. The magic restraints came off next together with the muzzle and for a moment he just stared at the boy. They were alerted to the fight by a smashing sound and the sound of breaking bones. The hulk was smashing around Seth as the others got their kicks in whenever he let go. Feeling the power bubble beneath his skin Loki rose to his feet. Stretching out his hands he started one of the strongest incantations he had ever learned. The avengers seemed to realize what was happening as they slowly backed off. Even the hulk got the message through its rather thick skull. With a loud rumbling sound and flashed of bright light the God was gone. Send off to Jotünheim where the cold and the giants would kill him before he got a chance to figure out how to get back.

He took in a few deep breaths to try and get his body to function properly again after the enormous flux in energy. He spotted Tony walking towards him and Fenrir, who was still seated on the ground looking in awe at his father. It gave Loki an incredibly warm feeling in his chest. How he had missed his child. He looked up as Stark coughed looking pointedly between him and his son.

"Stark let me introduce you to someone, my son, Fenrir."


	21. A show of gratitude

"So you are the son Loki is so proud of." Tony said as he held out his hand to the boy. In his human form he looked no older than fifteen, which was his Midgardian age if you compared it to how time traveled in the different realms. For a moment Fenrir hesitated, but in the end he grabbed his hand in a firm shake.

"Who are you, exactly?" The haughtiness, the sharp tone, if he didn't know better Tony had expected the boy to have been raised by Loki. Apparently some things really were hereditary.

"I'm Tony Stark, billionaire, awesome and a good friend of your father." He tried not to rub his hand when the kid let go, some people really forgot their own strength. He saw Loki's eyes soften as he looked at his son. It was rather endearing, not that he would ever admit that. They could speak no further as Steve came to interrupt the scene.

"Guys, Fury wants a meeting….with all of you. We are to bring the boy with us." A cold fear gripped Tony's heart as he realized that Fury probably would want the boy contained. One look at Loki's face told him that he had realized the exact same thing.

"We will be along shortly. Tell Fury we'll meet him at the tower, I need a drink." Steve looked like he wanted to object, but one look from Tony told him he would be fighting a losing battle.

"Hurry up, Tony." He muttered and left them once again alone. The other avengers were looking on from a distance and seemed unhappy with the news that Steve brought them. They however did seem to realize how young exactly Fenrir was, more than that, they realized how innocent the boy was.

"Listen Loki, I have a pretty good idea what Fury wants and you need to know I am on your side in this. If it comes to a fight I will help you to keep Fenrir here, just don't start blasting things immediately." Loki seemed conflicted. The genius realized that the god could probably disappear now with his son and never come back. "Loki, you said you wanted to stay. If you leave now you and your son will be hunted forever. Just try…"

"What's going on?" Fenrir's voice sounded rather hoarse, like he wasn't used to speaking. Which Tony realized with a sickening feeling, he probably wasn't.

"I have made some enemies on this planet and they do not trust me, or anything that involves me. Do not worry; I will not let them touch you." The steel in the god's voice made it clear that if anyone so much as touched his son they would probably have no limbs left. It made him realize how happy he was to be on the man's good side. Loki grabbed both of them by the arm and proceeded to transport them to Stark's tower. He had his powers back then, great.

"Brother!" Oh, did Thor never learn. "I went to the All-father to request more protection for Fenrir, but it was too late. I am happy to find that you are both in perfect health." Thor was the only one who seemed really happy to see them. The other Avengers looked all rather uncomfortable to be there. They clearly were not on board with whatever plans Fury might have. That gave Tony some faith in how things would turn out.

"Thor could you please shut up." Loki hissed as he placed his hand protectively on his son's shoulder.

"I agree, there are more important matters to discuss." Ah, the one eyed Cyclops decided to get to the 'problem' immediately. "Your son forms a threat to our city."

"My son has done nothing to warrant your anger. Is it not your law that you are innocent until proven guilty?" Tony got a look from the avengers that told him they thought him to blame for the fact that Loki knew about their laws.

"I'd rather not find out what a gigantic wolf can do to my city. Either take him away or I will make sure he cannot do any damage." Well one could never say that Fury did not have a sense of diplomacy.

"If you touch my son your city will be flattened to the ground in seconds." Loki threatened and not one person in the room doubted it. It was really more of a promise.

"Loki, please do not harm innocents over this. I can take back Fenrir to his island where he can do no harm and he will be safe." Thor seemed uncomfortable at suggesting it and if it wasn't for the fact that this was Loki's son they were talking about he would have probably agreed to the plan. The other avengers seemed very conflicted over the idea of separating father and son once again. Would Fenrir be the thing they needed to see that Loki wasn't as evil as everyone thought. There was a bark coming from the other room and Tony realized they had not seen Prancer yet.

"Jarvis, door." He was not going to leave Loki's side until he knew the god and his son were safe. The dog was it's ever bouncing self and rushed towards his owners who both gave him a pet in recognition. He seemed very curious about Fenrir, who of course was carrying the smell of another animal. It amused Tony to see the dog sniff the boy a couple of times and then sneezing. Once gotten over the shock he immediately jumped up again to get some attention from the amused boy. 'attention whore.' Tony thought fondly as the dog rolled over to let Fenrir pet his belly. The other avengers seemed equally amused by the dog's antics.

"Thor, if you try to take my son once more I will not hesitate to tear Asgard apart till I find him. You may have succeeded once to keep him from me, but I do not care about the faith of Asgard this time around." Ah, back to the topic again.

"Look, you guys. I still do not like Loki very much, but Tony clearly trusts him and Fenrir is just a child. He has done nothing to be treated with hostility. We might even be able to learn from him." Tony never really appreciate Bruce more than at that moment.

"My son will not be treated as a lab rat!" Loki snapped. Way to go to ruin the moment.

"Let him stay here Fury. The same threat counts for the boy as it does for Loki. Take one of them, or both, and I will personally come to get them back and you will lose all your funding and iron man." The rest of the team looked rather surprised. So they didn't know about his threat to Fury.

"I'm with Tony on this. I will not work with a team that harms innocent children and tears families apart." If Tony wasn't so in love with Loki he would have kissed Steve. Wait…in love? Well that was new.

"I have a lot of red in my ledger and I will not add child abuse to it." Natasha muttered, which meant Clint would follow them. Fury seemed to realize that he would lose his entire team if he didn't leave the child with Loki. For a moment Tony thought he was going to flip the table they were seated at, but after a few second he just sighed and left the room. He almost wanted to do a little dance. Fenrir had sat down and was now cuddling Prancer who seemed very happy with other boy. If he had been a cat he would probably have been purring.

"Thanks you guys." He told the team who were all looking at the child playing. They seemed to realize exactly who they were in the room with.

"I know we do not have the best of history, so I understand that your actions today are to be considered of an even bigger worth. I cannot thank you enough." Loki bowed, he actually bowed to all of the avengers. Tony really did not think he would ever see the day, but he could understand how much this meant to the god. He had his enemies to thank for being able to keep his son without bloodshed. They all seemed rather uncomfortable with it.

"It doesn't mean we like you though." Clint muttered and only Tony was able to see the corners of the god's mouth turn upwards. "But I suppose we can learn to tolerate you." That coming from the person Loki had once stripped of all his own will meant even more than the support earlier.

"I can understand that. I will try not to give you a reason to feel the need to attack me. " Even Natasha cracked a smile at the exuberant face of Thor. "My friends this is cause for a celebration!"

"Uh Thor, I think today is not the time. Let's do it in a week or so when Fenrir has settled in and all." He intercepted before Loki renegaded his promise and blew Thor's head off. The avengers left quickly after that, not really wanting to stay in the awkward situation any longer. Tony watched as Loki slowly approached his son and sat down next to him. They had a lot of catching up to do and they needed to do that on their own. He himself had some things to sort out anyway: In love, how in the hell did that happen?

Loki was rather wary of approaching his son, now nothing stood in the way of having a real conversation. The boy tensed as he sat next to him, but continued to pet the dog in his lap.

"He likes you a lot, you know." Fenrir muttered, which took Loki off guard.

"Who does?"

"Prancer does. He has a lot of fond memories of you and Tony. I feel rather jealous of him. I could not even remember what you looked like." These weren't the words of a boy, but of a young man scarred by the events of his life.

"I…"

"Why didn't you look for me? Why didn't you get me off that island? Why weren't you there?" all the questions Loki wanted to answer, but had no idea how to approach the boy about.

"The moment I learned of your kidnapping I searched every realm and everything in between, but it yielded no results. I threatened the All-Father, went to Frigga, went to Thor and begged them to tell me. They all told me it was for the best. The All-Father made them swear an oath of silence. I tried my son, I tried every year when I had a moment. I never stopped hoping that one day I would find you. I have missed so much of your life." He choked and really didn't care that he sounded weak. He had hurt his son. If only he had tried harder.

"That man, he came to me. He told me you were hurt and you wanted to see me in case you died. I am sorry I cause you and your friend trouble." The monotonous sound of his voice told Loki his son was drawing away from him. He had used it so often when he talked to Odin.

"If I had known Seth was capable of finding you I would have gladly joined his side to have you back. Do not think for one moment that I have stopped loving you. You are back here with me and I do not care how that happened. I know I have much to make up for, but I would like it if you gave me a chance to do so…" Fenrir looked at him and he could see the doubt twirling behind those eyes that were so much like his own.

"I missed you…" Fenrir whispered. If he ever saw Odin again no one was going to stop him from tearing the man apart, piece by piece.

"Not as much as I have missed you." He pulled his son in his arms and the boy did not protest. It took a few seconds but slowly two smaller arms wrapped themselves around his waist, pulling him in even closer. He felt his son let out a few sobs and it took him a moment to realize he was crying as well, albeit silently. When he spotted Stark in the doorway the man gave him a small smile and a thumbs up. It didn't matter to Loki that the man had seen him so weak. He trusted the man with his life and heart. Oh….oh!


	22. Chapter 22

Tony had decided that whatever feelings he might have for the dark haired god, he would not act on them. Loki was still repairing the mental damage he had received in Asgard and there was no telling if he would respond favorably to any advances he would make. It took him a moment to push everything aside when Loki finally joined him for sleep. He had been talking with Fenrir for hours, trying to get all the problems out of the way before they could move on. The boy himself was sleeping a few rooms down the hall.

"Stark?" Loki muttered when he entered the room.

"Mhhm?" he wasn't really asleep, but it took him a moment to get back from his thoughts. The lights came on with a snap of his fingers, making things a little easier for the god to manouvre.

"Nothing, I just wanted to see if you were still awake." He felt his mouth go dry as the shirt came off and so did the trousers. Really, he had seen the god get ready for bed more often than this. Granted, the man was good looking, god-like of course, but nothing had changed between them since the last time Tony had seen him undress. The pure white skin was soon enough covered again with a large cotton shirt and some jogging pants. Loki really had gotten the Midgard style down.

"Ah, had a good talk?" He turned onto his side to look at the god who had crawled in on the other side.

"Yes, all this emotional stuff really drains a person." It was punctuated with a yawn, which got a small snicker from Tony.

"You really shouldn't make a habit out of it. It's out of the way at least, you can start to get to know him now." Loki fluffed up his pillow a little before lying down as well. For a moment he thought they looked like two teenage girls at a sleep-over, trading secrets in the dead of night.

"Your team was rather courageous today. I did not think that they would help me."

"They aren't very fond of you, but they are good guys in the end. Fenrir is innocent, it would be unfair to send him away in case he might go bad."

"Yet, Odin did not see it like that." Tony wanted to erase all that bitterness in the god's voice. How Loki had never blown up Asgard before, he would never know.

"Odin is an idiot. Sending Fenrir away and locking him up on that island might have only made him set on destruction, which would have been avoided if he had stayed with you. All that prophecy nonsense really gets to you gods. I don't get it even if we on Midgard believed in that type of thing, we would just see it as fate and fucking unavoidable." He was surprised when the god snuggled into his chest. They had slept like that for a couple of nights now, but Loki had never initiated it really. He more or less allowed Tony to comfort him if he had another nightmare.

"Thank you, Tony. Now please go to sleep, I'm tired." He had nothing to say to that so he just curled an arm protectively around the god's waist and let sleep take him.

"Sir…" Tony seriously wished he wasn't being awoken for a some Avengers thing. They deserved a day off, for god's sake!

"What is it Jarvis?" He muttered, trying not to wake the sleeping god on his chest. Loki slept pretty heavy if he wasn't having any nightmares, so it shouldn't be that much of a problem. It was barely four hours since he had gotten into bed, so the man would sleep for another few hours if nothing major happened.

"It's the boy sir, he has been sitting in the living room for hours now. When I asked him if he needed anything he changed into his normal posture. If nothing is done to it he will destroy the room, sir." The AI answered. He could wake Loki, to go to his son and calm him down, but the god really needed his sleep. Hating the fact that he had to leave his rather comfortable spot, he removed the long pale arm that had been slung across his waist.

"Wow…" Was all he could say when he saw the monstrosity that was standing in his living room. What was a rather average size boy in human form, was now a wolf that was high enough to reach the ceiling. It's black fur looked beautiful and silky in the nightlight and his orange/brown eyes reminded him of Loki in his Jotün form. There was some squashed glass underneath it's paws, which Tony assumed had once been his coffee table. "Hey, Fenrir….you okay?" Really he was asking a gigantic wolf if he was okay!

The beast didn't give him a reply, it just swished his tail. He was just in time to duck out of the way. Fenrir seemed agitated by something, but the space was too small to move in properly. If he would have been able the canine probably would have been pacing the room. 'When I asked him if he needed anything he changed into his normal posture' Of course! The boy had absolutely no idea of modern technology, or Jarvis, so when he had heard a voice coming from out of nowhere he had changed to his normal form for protection.

"It's alright. The voice you heard was Jarvis, my computer. He is nothing to worry about." He awkwardly patted one of the huge paws. Sometimes he worried about his own idea of what wasn't a stupid thing to do. The wolf however seemed to be intrigued by him. He had no idea if Fenrir was able to talk in this form. After a few moments of staring, because really what could you say to a gigantic wolf, the form finally seemed to get smaller until there only was the boy left.

"Sorry about that." He muttered, waving at the broken glass and several other things he had knocked over.

"It's not a problem. The Hulk has been a houseguest here before and he left a bigger mess. Seriously you two really could have an awesome wresteling match when you are looking like that. You being all big and black with sharp teeth an him all growling and green…." He was rambling, but he just had a major adrenaline rush at six in the morning. He was allowed to be a little jittery. "What were you doing up here so late?"

Fenrir tucked a few strands of his black hair behind his ear. It was curlier than Loki's, but not by much. "I couldn't sleep. It's the first time since in centuries that I am off the island. Every time I close my eyes I think I'm back there and this is all a dream. I don't want to go back." Well if that didn't sound like Loki he would stop drinking entirely.

"Huh, you and your father are really alike." He muttered and when Fenrir raised his eyebrows he elaborated. "Your dad has the same problem. He doesn't sleep well either, but it's been getting better." He moved over to the kitchen, motioning the boy to follow him, which he did. "You don't have to worry about going back there you know. Loki and I will not let them take you." Pepper thought he could do absolutely nothing in the kitchen, but there was one thing he could make better than anyone else: Hot chocolate with marshmallows and whipped cream.

"Why can't he sleep. He told me he has been here for a while now." Fenrir took the mug with hesitation, but like every other person in the world started to drink a little faster after the first sip.

"Easy, you will burn your tongue. He has bad dreams occasionally. I usually wake him up when it gets too bad." He didn't really drank his hot chocolate, but just let the liquid warm his hands.

"You two share a room, don't you?" Oh god. How was he supposed to explain to a boy, who had never had any social interaction, that the way they slept together was purely platonic and that it wasn't a usual situation. Not to mention the fact that he should never mention that little piece of information in front of the other Avengers.

"Uh, yes. It was too much trouble to constantly go to his room whenever he had a nightmare, so I just kind of moved there. Your father doesn't like people to know about it though….so you think you could maybe never tell anyone else about it?" He felt like some bad guy, trying to corrupt a child. To his surprise the boy chuckled.

"I may have been stuck on an island for the past few centuries, but I am not ignorant about the way the world works. Frigga did not like Odin's punishment, but she could not stop it, so she send me books and lesson scrolls. I may not know what Jarvis is, but I know what it means when two people share a bed." The way he said it reminded Tony that the boy in front of him was technically a few centuries old. Talk about age-difference.

"I swear I never did anything to Loki!"

"You really think I believe that, with the way you two are staring at each other all the time? I'm not stupid you know." And that sounded like a teenager again.

"What do you mean; the way we are staring at each other? I'm just helping him sleep." Really, why was he being so defensive about this? Fenrir had not even been here a day and already he was claiming to know everything. That's why Tony never, ever, had kids.

"What else are you helping him with?" the mischievous twinkle in those eyes made it clear that he was most definitely not adopted. He refused to ever admit that there was a slight hue to his cheeks. This was like getting the third degree from the father of the girl you took to prom. Uncomfortable and in this case right on the money really. He had not helped Loki with anything, but he had thought about it…occasionally. "For what it's worth, he seems to like you. I don't really know my dad, but you have my approval if you need it. I'm going back to bed."

It really was easy to forget that he was fifteen. Tony placed both mugs in the dishwasher and ordered Jarvis to get the living room cleaned. As he slipped back into the bed and immediately had Loki curl against him in his sleep he had only one thought: 'maybe children weren't so bad after all.'


	23. the experiment

Heimdall stopped Thor before he could leave the portal and head on to the city. "I know why you are here and I want you to heed my advice: Do not start a war within Asgard. If Asgard falls the other realms will go with it. Use your words, but not your hammer." It was more words than the gatekeeper ever used, but that made it all the more clear to the god that he should heed the warning. Heimdall rarely gave the wrong advice. He had been summoned by his father to talk about the proceedings with Fenrir and felt it was time to confront his friends with what he had seen.

"I shall heed your words, my friend. Asgard does not need a war, it will not make things better for my brother." The gatekeeper seemed satisfied and took his position in silence once again. Thor mounted the horse that was waiting for him and rushed towards the palace in the distance. He would get his answers today.

"My son, I take it you have found Fenrir and taken him back to the island?" his father questioned him as he bowed down in front of him.

"I have found Fenrir, or rather Loki's son found us. He was in the hands of Seth. We have rescued him from the evil his clutches and he is currently residing with the man of iron and Loki." While he had offered to take Fenrir back to the island, he had seen the anguish on Loki's face when he was faced with his son after years of separation. His nephew was at his rightful place now.

"When will he be taken back to the island then?" Odin was frowning at him and Thor clenched his teeth at his father's ignorance. How had the man ever claimed to love his son?

"Father, I truly believe that letting Loki and Fenrir reconcile will be better for all the realms. He has threatened to tear Asgard apart if you try to take Fenrir away from him. Fenrir and Loki seem truly happy being together once again."

"Fenrir is prophecised to be a danger to the realms, I cannot let him roam free. Loki must understand this."

"Fenrir is but a child father! We should have never taken him away in the first place." Why was he so careless with the lives of his own grandchildren?

"Odin, Thor is right. Fenrir is a darling boy, I think that Loki can teach him to behave better than letting him stay on the island." Frigga interfered before her husband could interrupt.

"You all know he will be the bringer of Ragnarok and the person destined to murder me!" Odin was yelling at the both of them and Thor had more respect than ever for his mother when she did not so much as flinch.

"We both know that prophecies are a lot of guesswork and most certainly up for debate. We do not know if your actions will not be the cause for his anger, which would be more than justified. Your anger against that child comes from the mere fact that Angrboda was its mother."

"The child should have never been conceived! Loki should have learned with Sleipnir, but the boy was always hardheaded." Thor could not believe what he was hearing. Al this time he had thought it had been the best thing to do for Loki to keep the child away, now the truth came to light.

"Loki loves his children! You know his pregnancies while with Angrboda were never willing, but he loves them none the less! I've seen him with Sleipnir in the stables when he thinks no one is around, I've watched him scry for any indication where Fenrir might be for hours! You hurt your son for reasons he will never be able to change. I've stood by you for all these years because I love you and I knew you were thinking you were doing good, but if you try to take Fenrir from Loki again I will help him destroy Asgard. When you took him from Jotünheim and brought him to me, I did not object. I was hesitant of taking in someone else their child, but you promised me he would be a son to us just like Thor. For years I have seen you favor Thor, because you understood him better than you ever understood Loki, but please remember your promise. You love Thor because he is our son and so is Loki." Thor had absolutely nothing to add to that. He had never quite understood his brother's anger, but hearing it in these words reminded him how much Loki had suffered in Asgard. He had been suffering long before his last punishment.

"I know I have not always done right by Loki, but what do you want me to do about it?" Odin muttered.

"An apology will never be enough so let him have his son back. We may have lost our son permanently, the least we can do is give him a chance at being happy for once." His parents had always looked so strong and everlasting, but now they just seemed weary. Like the weight of the world was resting on their shoulders. As he left the room to go find his friends Frigga stopped him. "Please tell Loki that I am truly sorry and that I still consider him my son, even if he does not want me as a mother anymore." He gave his mother a firm hug and promised her to tell him when he went back to Midgard.

"Thor! To what do we owe your company on this fine evening?" Volstagg called out from the table where they all were gathered.

"Spare me your pleasantries Volstagg." Thor growled, trying to push the images away he had seen thanks to Heimdall. He would not be able to stop himself from tearing them all apart if he didn't.

"I something the matter?" Sif questioned him, sharing a look with the other men.

"What happened exactly in Loki's prison?" When they once again exchanged looks he got the proof he needed to truly accept that these people had hurt his little brother. "He never requested me to stay away, did he?" another silence. "SPEAK!"

"Look Thor, you would have only interfered…" Fandral started and almost immediately shut up when he growled.

"We were acting on behalf of all the other people out there that deserved their revenge!" Sif exclaimed. "Loki has done a lot of damage and he could finally be punished for it. Had you interfered you would have denied a lot of people their rightful revenge!"

"You call yourselves warriors, but you attacked an unarmed man when he was already being tried for all his misdeeds. Asgard does not allow people to exact their own revenge! Loki had no fair trial for this and now he may never return to Asgard." He was yelling at them, but at least he hadn't used his hammer…yet.

"As if that would be such a problem…" Sif muttered.

"Do not speak ill of Loki like that! He may have done wrong by you but he is still a prince of Asgard and my brother!" Sif seemed to be taken aback by that, as if she had forgotten how high Loki stood in the food chain.

"Look Thor, we are not proud by our actions, but do you really think that if we had not done it people would have just sat back. We are not the only ones who abused Loki and that does not make things better, but at least he knew us." He wasn't exactly sure how Volstagg thought that was a good thing, but then again Loki had always thought him to be a blundering idiot. Thor understood what his brother meant now.

"I know you never were particularly fond of my brother, but this was a betrayal far greater than he ever has made. I cannot strip you of your titles, because my father has apparently allowed this treason in the walls of Asgard, but know that if I could you would never see the light of day again." He ignored their pleas and explanations and made his way back to Heimdall. He used his hammer this time to shorten the travel time. He just wanted to go back to Midgard, where he at least knew where he stood.

When Tony woke up again a couple of hours later he realized he was in a rather terrible position. Loki had his legs somehow tangled through his and every time he or the god moved Loki's thigh would rub against exactly the wrong place….or the right one, depending on his intentions. He tried to shift out from under the god, hoping he could make a quick departure to the shower before Loki woke up and realized that he was causing some very hard reactions. A groan on his shoulder told him he had failed miserably. Green eyes still misty with sleep looked up with him, blinking slowly as the god came back to the land of the living. With his black hair thoroughly messed up and that sleepy grin, which told Tony that all the god's guards were down, he looked so adorable he just couldn't help himself. He kissed him.

It was their second kiss and somewhere in the back of his mind he was reminded of the last time they had did this and how it had ended. Loki however was just waking up and responded with fervor. It took the god next to him a few seconds to realize exactly what they were doing, Tony however realized soon enough that he wasn't the only one that was hard. It seemed the dark haired man seemed to be too shocked to do anything else than stare at the man that was lying above him. When he spotted the tent in Tony's sleeping pants he started to struggle though. He realized that the god was afraid of him, or more of what the situation brought back. Just like the last time. Suddenly he had an epiphany. Loki was already making his way out of the bed and he was just in time to grab the pale man his wrist.

"Do you trust me?" The question must have sounded rather stupid after the earlier happening, but Loki seemed to contemplate on which answer to give him.

"I suppose I do, but I…" Tony knew what he wanted to say. He wasn't ready. Turning to the bedside table he pulled out one of his spare ties.

"Look I can talk a lot of crap about how you need to get over this, but we both know it will not be easy. But you fucking want this and so do I. We can take it slow." Wow, he had never told anyone he was willing to take it slow. Then again this was a god he was talking to.

"I don't see how that has to do with your tie?" Loki commented dryly, which at least meant he wasn't so terrified anymore.

"You can tie me up, you will have all the control in what to do. Honestly if you don't tie me up I will be unable to stop my hands from wandering." Loki never had been in control for the past two years in that cell, maybe even before that. Giving him all the control meant he could stop it whenever he wanted to. "Do you really want to keep doing this otherwise? You panic every time I take control so just do this Loki." When the god took the tie from his hands he considered it an enormous step in whatever recovery the man was going through. It may not be the recommended thing to do by a therapist, but screw them. They both wanted it and if Tony was truly honest he wanted to see what the god would do if he had free reign.

The headboard of the bed had some intricate woodwork with a few very good places to loop the tie through. Once he was tied properly, tugging a few times to test the strength of the knots, he looked at Loki who seemed to be admiring his handy work. "You know Stark, I could just leave you here now." He was about to reply when two lips cut off his words. The god was hesitant at first, just staying with some kissing, but nothing else. After a minute or so, really Tony had lost all sense of time once Loki had started to kiss him, Loki's hands joined the experience making him groan. The long cool fingers trailed patterns over his stomach, slipping underneath the shirt and stroking his neck.

"Your heartbeat is extremely high, Stark." The god chuckled. Loki was clearly enjoying his power and seemed to be encouraged by Tony's groaning. He really couldn't help it, but being at the god's mercy was actually rather hot. He knew that this was all for Loki's sake, but damnit he would never deny that he was enjoying himself thoroughly. He had not been with a woman for a couple of months now and all this was driving him insane. When Loki got the courage to straddle him he nearly bucked the god off by arching his back. The mouth left his and now proceeded to nip at his neck, peppering it with openmouthed kisses. He was really skilled with that mouth of his.

"Sir…Fenrir is approaching." Within a second Loki was off of his lap and the tie had disappeared. He really did not need Loki's son to look at him with that knowing look so he quickly escaped to the bathroom. He heard the knock at the bedroom door right before he closed the bathroom door behind him. He was in need of a very cold shower. When he spotted himself in the mirror he almost laughed. He had a couple of hickeys in his neck and looked thoroughly debauched. They were certainly going to do that experiment again, for Loki's sake of course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: Oh dear, this is the first time I wrote such a scene…I really should not have been doing that in the living room with my parents nearby. I actually wasn't planning on it….it just happened. If you haven't seen it I recommend Taste the flesh-tony/Loki extended version on youtube. I recommended the shorter version in one of the earlier chapters but seriously if I have gotten my inspiration for this scene from anywhere it would be that video!


	24. Just enjoy the present

Loki refused to ponder on the way his son had taken one look at his face and immediately had given him a smirk that was Stark-worthy. He had send his him out of the room almost immediately, telling him he would join him in a couple of minutes. He had a problem to take care of first.

Now they were sitting in the living room across from each other. Fenrir had questions about control and magic. Being a son of Loki meant he had a certain aptitude for it and he was eager to learn from his father. Letting his hands trace patterns in the air and creating beautiful images was fun to do. He had used his magic for terrible things in the past few years and creating such pure things for the fun of it felt like a breath of air. They really were pretty basic spell, but they formed the basis on which full copies were made. If Fenrir trained hard and a lot he might be able to do it someday. Normal students however started much younger and once again Loki felt an anger towards his father for taking his son away. It was true that the boy would never need it to truly protect himself, considering his true shape, but magic was so much more than a form of protection. It gave a person the ability to create things by just using his mind.

"Uncle Thor!" Making Loki look up from where he was explaining the need for total concentration when using spells. Indeed there was a blip of red coming straight towards the tower. He tried not to panic when he saw the severe look on the Thor's usually happy face.

"Has the All-father decided what he wants to do?" he sneered as he resisted the urge to pull his son behind him.

"Fenrir is allowed to stay, but father was not happy with the idea." Something that had been coiled tightly around his chest loosened up, making it easier to breath.

"What do you mean, Thor? If he is unhappy with the verdict, why did he give it at all?" It did not really matter to Loki. If he was able to keep his son he did not care who was hurt in the process, east of all Odin. He was however curious how the man had come to the decision.

"Mother and I were able to make him see sense in taking Fenrir again. I do advice you to keep an eye on him, for father will be easily swayed to change the verdict." So Thor had stood at his side. There was a pang in his chest when he thought of Frigga. The woman had never hurt him, but he had hurt her.

"How is Queen Frigga doing?" He wanted to swallow the words immediately after he had spoken. It had been a moment of weakness.

"Mother is as well as she can be. She wants you to know she still considers you part of our family, as do I." She still wanted him as her son, even if he let Laufey into their home and nearly killed her husband. 'Such devotion is not something that happens every fucking day' Tony's words came back to him. After all he had done they still wanted him there.

"Tell her…" he swallowed, how could he possibly face her after all he had done? "…I would be honored if she would come to visit Midgard. I think she would like this place." The blinding smile Thor gave him meant he had said something right at least.

"I think mother will be pleased to hear that! I'm sure she will want to see Fenrir again as well." The boy smiled back at Thor who proceeded to pull him up into a bear hug. "I am so happy you are okay my nephew!" It was a good thing Fenrir was a god or he would have been crushed by that hug. Loki really had to install some proper wariness in his son. The boy, while not totally ignorant of how the world worked, was too trusting for his own good. He had never been exposed to the horrors of what people could do. He also wasn't exactly aware yet how he had ended up on the island to begin with, even though he had understood that Odin was mostly to blame for it.

"What's with the family reunion? Did I miss something while I was in the shower?" Loki twirled around to find the man entering the room. His hair was still wet from his shower and the shirt clung to his still damp chest. He tried his hardest to keep his face impassive when he remembered what exactly he had been doing to those lips and that neck. The shirt he was wearing had a high collar, but Loki felt Fenrir's eyes on him when he spotted the red mark showing at the edge. He refused to acknowledge his son and decided that when Frigga came to visit them, they would have a talk about which books were proper material for a teenager.

"Man of Iron I have grand news!" Thor pulled Tony in a hug as well, true to his rather exuberant nature. "Fenrir is granted to stay at Midgard and Mother will soon come to visit you!" Loki almost laughed when he noticed Stark's eyes widening at the prospect of meeting Frigga.

"That's….great news." He muttered, rubbing his neck. Thor really had to learn how to remember that humans were not made of the same material as gods. The god in question was however distracted when Prancer decided to make his grand entrance. Both him and Fenrir seemed enamored with the little creature and proceeded to play fetch with it on the roof, while Tony stayed behind with him. If Loki didn't have a shared history with Thor, he could probably accept the happy brute like his son could, but right now the betrayal felt a little too fresh. He would however not stand in the way of his son and brother bonding, Thor would probably be one of the few immortals Fenrir would ever meet.

"So, your mother is coming to visit…how do you feel about that?" To be honest Loki wasn't sure. He never really could consider Frigga anything else but his mother. She had told him bedtime stories and listened to him talk for hours about magic without complaint.

"She still considers me her son after all I've done. I cannot deny her anything."

"I'm not asking you whether you are going to refuse her, I'm asking if you want to see her." Tony grabbed some type of cereal out of the cupboard and proceeded to make it milk with cereal instead of cereal with milk.

"Frigga was never my real mother, but I do not think my real mother could have been any better. She gave me the same amount of attention as she gave Thor. She was….good." Tony looked for a moment at Loki and the god suddenly hated the fact that this human always seemed to know exactly what he was thinking. He was certain that if he schooled his face into a mask of indifference Stark still knew exactly what to say or do.

He almost held the hand offered to him as a life line as the man squeezed it in support. "She had already forgiven you for what you have done, just show her you are still her son and everything will be fine. Just try not to blow up New York between now and her visit." He chuckled and pulled back his hand. The silence that reigned in the kitchen was a calm and comfortable one, only to be broken by the sounds of Tony chewing his food.

"Do you think I can borrow Fenrir for a minute later?"

"I think you should ask him that, what for anyway?" What on earth could Tony want with his son.

"I want to get his magical signature and everything added into Jarvis his system. That way he will be easier to trace should he get lost." Loki knew for a fact that he and all the avengers were in the system, all the people Tony cared about really, and he wanted to add his son…it touched a sensitive spot in his heart.

"I'm sure he would enjoy getting to know Jarvis." Loki certainly knew he had. The AI knew a lot about his creator and seemed rather fond of telling stories when you asked politely. Tony made a face at him that made him chuckle once again. Jarvis liked to tell stories, but Tony was a lot less fond of hearing them.

"About this morning…" for a moment he wondered if the flush he saw on Tony's face was a blush, but he quickly dismissed it. The man was incapable of shame and therefore blushing. "I want to…ah...thank you." He really did mean it, but how on earth was he supposed to express that? Thank you seemed small and insignificant to the gratitude he was feeling. While he felt nowhere near his usual self when it came to the physical aspect of any form of a relationship, it had felt liberating to be able to be close to another human being without fear. Many of his children had been rather violent and more than half the time unwanted affairs. He loved his children, but the situation they had come from were less than ideal. Except for his sons with Sigyn, but they were no more. Stark had given him all the reigns and left himself vulnerable for the god to do as he pleased. He could have hurt the man, killed him even and he had not even so much as shown an ounce of fear when the last knot was tied around his wrists. It hadn't been that he did not trust Stark not to take any liberties with him, not that he could, but the feeling of those hands on his body reminded him of all those times the touch had been unwanted. It was difficult to make the distinction between them and Stark while he was lost in his mind, so when they took that part out of the equation…

"Don't worry, I can honestly say: the pleasure was all mine." And that lewd comment conveyed a lot more to Loki than anyone else would have seen. Tony just told him he understood and that meant a lot more than he could possibly express in words.

When Thor had finally left and Tony and Fenrir had headed off towards the basement, Loki enjoyed a few moments of silence to himself. So much had changed over the course of a few days. He had his son with him, Stark and him most definitely had changed their relationship to a more physical level and he finally had some clarity on how he stood with the rest of the world. It was a lot to take in.

He had not felt this kind of hope in so many years that it almost felt foreign to him. His life seemed to be heading somewhere that wasn't darkness and hatred, which only meant he could fear it. It always was like this. Something would go right in his life only to have something else torn apart. Maybe Tony would decide he had enough of him and his son and kick them out. Maybe Fenrir would realize that his father wasn't someone to want as a family member and decide to go back to the island. What if Frigga had not forgiven him for his crimes…it was certainly a possibility.

The Avengers, with the exception of Thor, had not come around to see if Fenrir had destroyed the tower yet. Which he took as a good sign. Was this just Karma paying him back for all the trouble he had to endure during his long life? He could not imagine him having that much points earned to get not only Tony but also Fenrir, Frigga and Thor. Looking out over the city that was slowly turning on the lights to stave of the darkness of the night a little longer he imagined his life just mere years ago. Before the mess with the Jotüns and Thor's banishment. He never ever imagined the path to be so winding and full of trick steps, but now he had arrived at this point and had absolutely no regrets. Well he did not like the deaths inflicted upon Midgard and Asgard, but he would not risk this for anything. Not even having the chance to change that. It was in the past and he could not change it, he could only enjoy the present and that would have to be enough.


	25. Family moments

Where the other two gods were rather slow in learning how to use modern technology Fenrir was rapidly picking up on the process. Perhaps it was because he was rather young in comparison and very smart, but all Tony knew was that he was having fun showing the kid all the awesome things he could do. Fenrir was particularly interested in the design table and he couldn't help but show him all the incredible things he had made. He never denied that he loved being idolized. Currently the boy was playing with the designs for a Stark building that was going to be built in England, London.

"You know, I don't really like this one." That really wasn't what Tony was going for.

"What do you mean?" To him it seemed like the perfect building. Aerodynamic, shiny and not to mention running on clean energy.

"I've seen pictures of England, all those buildings look older…this looks to modern to fit there."

"I'll have you know that there are also modern buildings in London, but what would you suggest then?" He stood across from the boy as he contemplated designs.

"More stone and less glass. Lower the building and build a large garden on the roof just like this one has." Tony considered it for a moment and then started working at the program to add the wanted details. It was a rough design and he would have to configure some data to see how it would work when you considered the different weather conditions it should be able to withstand. The result was a twelve story building with a Zen garden on top. If you took the garden away it looked a lot like the Stahlman building in Nashville.

"You really think this is a better design?" Tony questioned as he let the 3D image rotate above the table.

"I think so, yes." It really wasn't terrible to look at, but so very different from what he was used to building. His usual was modern with a lot of glass.

"I'll forward it to Pepper and let her decide which one she likes the best." Pepper had requested a transfer after their break up and he had now appointed her as the official representative in England for Stark enterprise. They rarely had to speak to each other and even less time meeting up. Happy had followed her to England, which felt like a harsh betrayal at first. Now he was just glad they both were happy in their new country. He had the Avengers and Loki to fall back on.

"Sir there is someone at the platform." Jarvis informed them, as they shut down the table.

"Who is it exactly and what are they doing on my platform?" It wasn't unusual for the team to use the platform to enter the building if they came by plane, or in Thor's case by hammer, but Jarvis usually used their names instead of being so vague.

"I believe it to be Queen Frigga, sir." Wow, when invited she really didn't wait weeks for the meeting. He wasn't exactly sure how happy he should be with that. He was technically sleeping with her son, after all. Fenrir however seemed to have no hesitations about greeting the tall woman in the room. Queen Frigga was an absolute beauty and radiated royalty. Her long blond hair was in a braid and her figure was the perfect hourglass. Even with the small wrinkles, betraying her age she looked stunning. Tony felt a little peeved that she was actually a little taller than he was. She was probably just wearing heels.

"Jarvis, has Loki been…."

"Don't worry Stark, I'm already here." Loki commented as he entered the room and proceeded to bow for his mother. Tony felt rather foolish for not even really greeting the queen. He wanted to go and bow as well, but when he saw the look in Frigga's eyes decided that he should just keep quiet.

"My son, since when do you feel the need to greet me so formally?" Loki seemed surprised at her words.

"I…" Tony did not even blame him for not finding the words to express what he was feeling. If he had been in the god's position he probably would not be able to find any words either. Fenrir seemed rather lost, standing at Frigga's side after hugging her and now seeing his father so demure.

"You have repented for your crimes Loki, what has passed is history, I just want my son back." She spread her arms and in the blink of an eye Loki was hugging her. It seemed such a heart breaking family moment that he started to inch his way out of the room. They deserved some quality time together.

"And where are you going Mr. Stark?" Damn, he felt like he had just been caught by his teacher passing notes to another student. Loki and Fenrir both looked at him puzzled, but Frigga seemed to understand his intentions and when she smiled at him she was even more beautiful. "I want to meet the man who is liked so much by both of my sons. That is a rather hard feat to accomplish, you know."

"I don't think there is much there that would interest you….MyLady?" Lord, the day had finally arrived when he showed some humility. Somewhere hell must have frozen over.

"Please, call me Frigga. And if my sons adore you there must be something redeeming about you."

"There is! He really has very cool computers and he made Jarvis. He also has an awesome suit!" Really, it took him only one day to corrupt the boy's language. Thank god he had laid of the swearing for a bit or Loki would truly kill him once Frigga went back home. Frigga laughed at her grandson's enthusiasm and just like that the ice was broken.

They had lively conversation at the dinner table, which was actually used for a change, and Tony was regaled with tales of Loki when he was just a boy. While Loki showed signs of a petulant teenager with the embarrassing stories, Tony knew enough to see the man was happy. For once the focus was just on him and he felt no need to compete with Thor over who did something better. He could only imagine what it must have been like for Loki, a shy and timid child, next to the boisterous Thor. He probably was never capable of saying anything without Thor claiming the attention once again. It wasn't necessarily the brother's fault, as he just didn't know any better, but it must have been annoying for Loki.

Frigga had an even more lovely personality and Tony felt a certain regret at seeing her leave that evening, but no matter what he said she would not accept the invitation to stay the night. Fenrir had disappeared a little earlier to his room with one of Tony's tablets to keep himself company. He had not been send away in particular, but the boy understood that the "grown-ups" needed to talk. Frigga informed Loki of all the things that had happened during his imprisonment and the time he had spent on earth and Loki told her of the happier moment in those years, as few as there were. Tony felt proud that Prancer and him mostly starred in those moments. The pain on the queen's face when he also told her that he would never return to Asgard ruined the moment however. He was glad she understood and did not press Loki to come back, but Loki clearly seemed torn between hurting his mother and hurting himself. When she assured him she just wanted to see him happy and would visit often the tension drained from his face though.

"That went very well, don't you think?" Tony commented as he sat back down on the couch after Frigga had left.

"Better than I could have imagined….I thought I had no one left…" It took a few seconds for Tony to understand what the god had murmured under his breath.

"Hey, don't talk like that okay. You have me, Fenrir, Thor and now your mother." Really, after all these weeks Loki still thought he couldn't count on him?

"I didn't mean here on Midgard, I meant in Asgard. Thor spends most of his time here so he doesn't really count for that."

"Oh, I have been meaning to ask you about that. You don't have to answer this, but what happened to Sigyn? I thought that was a pretty happy marriage." He almost regretted the words when a heavy silence reigned between them, but he really wanted to know. Especially if Loki was still married to her, because technically he would be cheating then. Somehow Tony didn't think that the god would be the one punished for the infidelity.

"Sigyn and I…were indeed happy. As happy as one can get at least in an arranged marriage. When our sons however were punished for my actions things could not go back to what they were. She never truly could forgive me for it and according to what I last heard she is now happily married to one of Asgards finest. A true Aesir." Loki didn't really look at him and it must have pained the god to admit he was the reason for the broken marriage. They had torn the entire family apart for one mistake. A mistake he had made. The god clearly needed to be distracted from whatever dark place he was heading.

"Well that's a good thing, because it mean I can do this." Trying to keep his hands from wandering too much he kissed Loki. The god was clearly surprised as it took him a moment to reciprocate. "You know we really should try that tie thing again…" Tony mumbled against the man's lips, curling one of his hands in the black hair in the nape of his neck.

"Really Stark, should have known you were one to enjoy the perverted things." Those long fingers came up to stroke his neck, sending shivers down his spine.

"I'm only doing it for you, you know." He groaned as one hand fisted his shirt, drawing him in even closer to the tall god.

"Of course, no one could ever tell you you're not an altruistic person." Damn, that hair was really soft.

"I'm of a very, very, giving nature. I could show you if you like." Why were they talking so much?

"I think we should move to a little more private setting for that…" Tony pulled the god up, not even stopping the kissing and walked them over to the bedroom. Thank god he knew the route with his eyes closed, otherwise this would have gone very bad, very fast. When Loki fell backwards on the bed he took a moment to admire his own handy work. The hair was messed up and his lips were swollen. Those beautiful eyes were nearly entirely black by the blown pupils.

"Are you sure?" Really this was going very fast all of a sudden. Just a day ago Loki was barely able to let him kiss him without stiffening and now this.

"I'd like to try." And with those words he suddenly found himself on his back with the god on top of him, kissing away any protests he might have come up with. Their shirts were quickly discarded and the new skin was being explored by lips and fingertips. It took Tony a lot of willpower not to flip the god on his back and take control, because he knew how that would end. He didn't think he had ever spent so much time on just exploring someone's upper half of their body. With one night stands he did not need to know where there were small scars on the skin, which birthmark was slightly elevated and which caused a dimple in the skin. When his hands trailed lower though he got the reaction he had been waiting for. The legs beside him tensed and the god hesitated with what he was doing.

"Okay, you are not ready." Loki pulled back from where he had been spending some quality time with Tony's neck.

"Since when do you tell me what I can and cannot do?" Tony really, really did not want to stop, but now it felt like Loki was only there with half his mind while the other part tried to keep from clamping shut. He wanted the god to be able to enjoy this without reservations about what was happening. They had made enormous progress in the past few days really, but now was not the time to rush this along. This was something worth waiting for. It was funny that all this was based on the fact that he knew Loki wanted him, while it sounded as if they were in a committed and loving relationship. While that thought didn't seem as frightening as it had looked a short while ago, they were not in such a relationship. He wasn't even sure Loki cared for him any more than just friends.

"Since this is a double act and I do not want to worry about hurting you." For a moment Loki looked hesitant.

"Don't worry Stark, you will not hurt me." He leaned forward again but Tony stopped him. He had caught that fleeting moment in those big green orbs. Loki was afraid of failure.

"Look we will get there okay…just not tonight. Don't worry about this: I'm not angry, nor disappointed. Only very horny to be honest." He almost thought he had ruined the moment with those last words but thankfully Loki let out a startled laugh.

"You truly are a strange creature Tony Stark." Tony almost whimpered at the loss of contact when Loki got of his lap, but he realized the god was just going to get changed into his night clothes. Deciding to do the same, he grabbed a couple of things he needed and disappeared into the bathroom. When he came back out Loki was already in the bed with his back turned to the spot Tony usually slept. He frowned when the god didn't curl up against him as he had been doing since that night Tony had stroked his hair to calm him down. Apparently his words hadn't really hit home hard enough and Loki still felt the need to close himself off. Too bad he was dealing with Tony Stark. Wrapping an arm around the god's waist he pulled the man flush against him.

"Night, Reindeer games." And with that the lights turned off for the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I hope you guys liked this one as much as I liked writing it. historicn ashville. wordpress 2009/01/26/ the-stahlman-building/ This is btw the Stahlman building.


	26. Truly living

"Oh man…it's true then. " Rhodey exclaimed as he saw Loki and Fenrir out on the terrace. Tony had been rather surprised by the visit and even more so when the man just brushed past him.

"What exactly are you talking about, buddy?" He hadn't spoken to Rhodey in a while, because of some top secret mission in the middle east which meant no phone calls.

"You actually are playing host to Loki and his son. Seriously man, I go away for a few weeks and you do this? Do you really need a permanent baby sitter?" It was clear he wasn't sure whether to be amused or freaking out. James had always been very capable of pulling both of at the same time.

"I'll have you know that Loki is actually rather fun and his son is a prodigy architect." He held up a bottle of scotch and poured two glasses when Rhodey nodded.

"A prodigy….fun…really when Steve told me you were going insane, I didn't think he was actually serious!" Tony frowned as his friend took a few big gulps, not really savoring the very expensive drink.

"You talk to Captain Spangles?" It shouldn't surprise him really. Both were military men, they probably bonded over their love for their country.

"Steve and I hang out occasionally, yes. Especially with Pepper gone I need someone who can keep you on a leash."

"I doubt Steve would be that kinky, but I'm totally for the awesome leather collars." He was awarded by some scotch going up Rhodey's nose. "But seriously, you come back from your mission and instead of informing me you call Capsicle?" That did sting a little.

"I didn't call him first, he called me. Unlike you he actually checks the logs to see if missions have ended. The news he gave me was rather shocking to come home to." Seriously, if him and Steve hadn't bonded over queen and country they certainly bonded over the fact that they had no life.

"Well as you can see I was a little preoccupied. Though seriously, what are you planning to do with the information now you have seen with your own eyes that Loki is living under my roof. I'm pretty sure that Steve also has told you about the consequences if you try to take him away." He trusted the man in front of him with his life, but his honor often got in the way of things. He wasn't sure on how much support he could count when Loki was the subject.

"Tony, I trust your judgment and I do not want to hurt an innocent child by taking away his father, but are you absolutely certain?" This was what he liked about Rhodey, he would listen to him first and then his own morals.

"I'm certain James, shit, you should have seen the state he was in when he came here." Oh, that wasn't exactly what he was planning to say. The man however had always been his confidant and he knew all the shit that Tony had gone through in his life. He could trust him with this information and fuck it if he didn't feel the need to at least tell someone. Thor knew now, and so did Frigga probably, but those weren't exactly people he could talk to about his thoughts on the material. He wasn't even certain to what extent those people knew. He took a look out the window where he could see Loki and Fenrir practice conjuring images, they would be busy long enough for this.

"Come with me, I think you understand that this needs to stay between us." He told his best friend as they took the stairs down to the lab. When Rhodey nodded he called to Jarvis to show him the scans made when the god had appeared at his house. It took a while for James to understand the material that was shown on the screens, but it was clear on his face when he grasped the severity of the situation. Tony had been watching him closely and ignoring the images, he did not need to see them again. They were seared in his brain.

"Jesus Christ." Rhodey muttered as he read a few texts as he tapped several wounds.

"That isn't justice James. That's torture. The man on that roof is not the same person that was standing there a few years ago. Come on, he threw me out of a fucking window and attacked my city, but I can't even stand to look at those pictures."

"I get it Tony. Do the others know, it might help to get their approval of Loki."

"Look I told you this in confidence, because Christ I needed someone to tell, but I doubt Loki would want anyone to know what he went through. Would you like people to know you have been humiliated in the worst ways possible." He understood Rhodey's reasoning, but this was just not knowledge you put out on the table as a peace offering. For a moment James said nothing and just looked at Tony as if he was a very interesting puzzle.

"No, you have got to be kidding me!" The man was shaking with laughter and Tony felt like he was missing out on a joke. "I knew that when Pepper left you would go a little crazy, but falling in love with a Nordic God was not what I expected to happen." In love with a….god damnit, how was it that everyone else got what took him at least a month to figure out.

"I'm sorry, just a moment ago you were nearly dragging said god out of my tower. Why are you so happy about this?" He sure as hell wasn't. He was nearly to the point of crazy manic laughter with the mess that was the situation. He was nearly screwing Loki, nearly as he still had to relieve himself more times than he had done since he was a teenager, spending time with said man's son, meeting the parent and he still had no fucking clue if the god wanted to be more than "friends with benefits".

"You're not even denying it? Oh man you've got it bad! I always knew you were slightly insane, but I don't think I have even seen you this gung ho about Pepper, and that's saying something."

"That still doesn't explain why you are so fucking happy? I would appreciate it if you stopped comparing Loki to my ex-girlfriend, by the way." He already had one glass, but he seriously needed another scotch.

"I'm not exactly happy with your choice, but it is a relief to see you are actually capable of committing to someone. We both knew you weren't exactly committed to Pepper, she was just easy because she knew you for so long." Tony hated to admit it, but James was probably right. He dropped his head on the desk.

"God, I haven't even slept with a anyone for over three months now. The universe hates me!" He groaned, making Rhodey laugh even harder.

"I think God is the right word to use and I think it's a good thing. For once I do not have to worry about you causing a scandal." They made their way back up to the living room and Tony ignored the look his friend gave him when he immediately checked if Loki and his son were still on the roof. "I've gotta go man, but I'm glad you are alright. You and Loki have my support, if it means anything." It actually meant a lot that he had his best friend behind him in the whole mess, but true to their nature he just said nothing and let Rhodey walk out of the building.

"I didn't know it could actually snow this much on Midgard." Loki commented as they came back inside. He and his son both had red cheeks from the cold air and small white flecks in their hair and clothing, which were quickly disappearing in the hot air inside.

"You should see Central Park when it has properly snowed. It's actually pretty cool." They watched the air outside while Fenrir went off to play with Prancer. Those two really were inseparable. Probably because they both belonged with the Canines really. It had been a surprise for Tony when he had found two dogs instead of one playing in the living room. Apparently Fenrir also had a size small when it came to his true form.

As he watched the white snowflakes twirl down and cover the city in a soft white sheet he realized something. Winter was coming. Winter meant December and December meant Christmas. He had not celebrated that particular feast in years. Not really at least. Charity balls, getting drunk in bars and sleeping with the best thing that comes along wasn't exactly what people meant with Christmas cheer. It was late November already and it wouldn't be long before the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree would be lit. Would it be too early to buy a tree for the building? He actually wanted to celebrate Christmas with Loki and Fenrir, considering both probably never had a fun holiday in their entire life.

"Let's go to the ice skating rink." He decided. "Jarvis make sure the car is up front in a couple of minutes."

"Stark, what on earth are you planning? If you are thinking about going somewhere away from the tower you are forgetting something very important."

"Like what?" he was already deciding on his outfit for the day, not really paying attention to the flustered god.

"I'm not really well liked. Going out in public would cause extreme panic, which your director will not enjoy, I can assure you."

"I also remember you being a shape shifter and no one even knows who Fenrir is. We will be perfectly fine. Now you should dress up warmly…"

It was rather hilarious to see Loki clinging to the edge of the ice rink with a terrified look on his face. He had changed himself, but not to drastically. His black hair was shorter and a dark brown, his face slightly less pointy and that was about it. People still remembered the god to be wearing antlers and spouting large speeches on why they should kneel. They didn't even look twice at the man who was staring fearfully at the smooth expanse of glittering ice. Well maybe some of the females and men looked twice in a very appreciative way, which didn't sit very well with Tony, but all in all they were safe. He himself had dressed himself as casual as he could possibly go and with a wooly hat that covered his ears and hair people didn't really see Tony Stark. People really were blind sometimes, but it worked well for their purpose.

Fenrir had thrown himself into the skating rink with the same enthusiasm he showed for everything else and soon was twirling around Tony and Loki. He too seemed rather amused with his father. Taking pity on the Nordic god, the billionaire decided he could teach the man a few of the more basic things. It was rather embarrassing to see six year old girls with tiaras on their heads pass the god of mischief. Tony was actually rather worried that Loki might just trip one of the children out of spite.

"Seriously, I thought you were used to cold and ice. How can you possibly not know how to skate?" He joked as he joined the man on the sidelines.

"I think you people are the only ones that think it fun to try and keep your balance on a tin slate of frozen water." Loki growled, clearly not in a joking mood.

"Come on, Reindeer games. I'll show you how to not suck at it." Loki nearly fell down when Tony took one of his hands to pull him along. While Tony himself wasn't a prima ballerina on the ice himself, he was capable of staying on his feet and skating backwards. Taking the other hand he slowly pulled the man up on the ice. If he stayed near the edge he would never let go of it.

"Just move slowly okay. Smooth sweeping movements. Try to balance your weight." Loki seemed to be a fast learner, but he kept looking too much at his feet. "Okay, just look at my face okay. Did you ever learn to dance? Just follow, don't think so much about what you are doing." Tony locked eyes with the god who seemed to get a little more reassured on the ice and even managed to give his son a smile when he called out some encouragement to his father. His eyes really were a peculiar color. Sometimes they looked a clearer blue than the sky and other times they were green like the grass in the park. Seriously, blue skies and green as grass? Tony needed to have his head looked at because those were the comparisons made by some teenage girl, not a full grown man. He tried to focus once again on his skating and keeping Loki in balance. Softly he released one hand. "Are you ready to skate on your own?" Tony asked as he saw the god move a little less smooth by the change in motion.

"I think…" he couldn't finish his sentence because one of the six year old girls that earlier had been skating passed him now ran him straight over. She threw him a look over her shoulder and then proceeded to skate towards her friends. Tony should have let Loki trip her.

"Are you alright?" he asked as both him and Fenrir leaned over him. For a moment the god looked dazed and winded, but then he held out his hand.

"Could you please help me up?" It seemed to go right, both him and Fenrir had a tight grasp on the arms and Loki was up in a second only to slip and take them both down with him. After the shock had passed Tony burst out laughing and was soon joined by Loki and Fenrir. 'This was truly living' he thought as the white snowflakes poured down around them.


	27. Decorating the tree

The tree was rather impressive in its stature. Tony first wanted to place a larger one on the roof in the middle of the garden, but Loki pointed out to him that the strong wind would probably ruin whatever they tried to put in it. Still, the one in the living room was extremely wide and the perfect picture of a Christmas tree. Loki had expected nothing less from Stark. He wasn't exactly sure what all the fun was about when it came to this holiday. He had looked up the meaning and was quite frankly confused on why they celebrated the day. A guy was born who had great impact on people back then and suddenly his birthday was worth celebrating for centuries. They weren't even sure if it was his official birthday! He didn't quite get it, but Stark seemed to be very happy about it.

"It's just a fun and over-commercialized weekend, it has hardly anything to do anymore with religion." He had said when Loki asked him about it. Deciding to just follow Tony in whatever mad things he was planning, he didn't protest. It was rather fun watching his son and Stark discuss on where they would put the tree. They seemed to get along very well and he did not feel any need to take part in the rather pointless discussion. The damn thing only really fit in two places so it shouldn't be that difficult to decide. He closed his eyes as they once again moved it to the other spot in the room to see if the lighting really was better over there. He was dead tired after the shopping spree that day and for the life of it could not understand where Tony and Fenrir got the energy from.

It had been earlier that morning when Tony came up with the idea to go shopping for baubles to put in the tree and other Christmas decorations. Loki never regretted saying yes to anything quite as much as he did to that. The man had carted them off to one of the busiest and biggest stores in New York and proceeded to run around like Thor on a caffeine rush, leaving Loki to fend for himself most of the times. There had been a scarily large amount of screaming children and parents who tried to keep them near. More than once there had been females who had been flirting with him. He hadn't actually thought them to be flirting as they had children with them, which made it just wrong. When he had told Stark however, when he finally found him at the iron man department, the man had immediately latched himself to his side and didn't leave again until they were finished shopping.

He picked up one of the boxes, reaching inside to see what the man had exactly bought. "And here I was under the impression you could not get any more vain…" He held up the little miniature of Iron man at the string that was attached at the top.

"I am proud of my suit so it deserves to be hanging in the tree." Tony threw him a smirk. "If I do not love myself, no one will." He stopped tugging at the large pot that contained the green monster and looked at Fenrir and his handy work. It was standing right in front of the window, splitting the large glass wall into two pieces. "I think it should stay here." He had his back turned towards Loki and the god couldn't help but feel a need to throw something at him. It was a rather satisfying sight to see the configured miniature hit the back of Stark's head.

"Did you just…really Loki, are you really suggesting we put you in the tree?" Tony asked him as he picked up the mini Loki that was now lying on the ground. As an answer another miniature was flicked to his head, which he caught this time. A mini wolf this time around. "Are you actually leaving any miniatures of me?" Loki was tempted to change the whole box of Iron man into either him or Fenrir.

"I think I will…but honestly Stark, don't you think it is only fair to have also me and Fenrir as decorations. We are after all helping you decorate it." He took another sip of the heavenly beverage Tony called cocoa.

"Really, up till now the only ones I see working here are me and Fenrir." Tony snapped back, clearly enjoying the banter.

"you want me to help then? " the strings of little lights rose from the box they had been packed in and started to wrap themselves around Stark. He made a very funny sight, hopping around trying to get the glowing lights to unwrap themselves. Both Loki and Fenrir burst out laughing as the man stumbled and crashed into the couch. If he had landed on a hard surface Loki would have felt a little guilty, but no harm seemed to have come to the mortal. Feeling light and happy the god proceeded to hang a couple of mini iron mans on the bound man his ears. Unaware that his secrets would soon be laid bare for those he wanted to never know.

"Thor, what on earth has got you this upset?" Steve moaned as once again thunder rolled through the sky. It had been terrible weather these past few days and the only one that could be blamed for it was the Thunder god. They were on a secret mission and ever since the man had come back from his last visit to his father they had been dealing with bad weather.

"I'm sorry Captain, it's my father, I cannot persuade him to let my brother be." The plane once again trembled by the rough weather.

"I'm sorry, but is that a bad thing? Two years is awfully short for what he has done, no matter if he is a father or not….I still can't believe Tony is working with him, honestly." Clint commented from his seat across from Thor.

"I don't get it either. Rhodey seemed to be rather forgiving as well. Is there something we don't know Thor?" Steve always was rather good at making people spill their guts. Not as good as Natasha of course, but this was his friend.

"My brother has suffered much, I do not wish to add insult to injury by betraying his trust." Thor looked torn between spilling his secrets and protecting his brother's privacy.

"It might help him if we know what we are dealing with." Steve always was a voice of reason and it probably was a good thing Clint did not speak this time as he would probably find a way to insult Loki.

"I…Loki must not know I told you this, for he would murder me where I stand." After a moment of hesitation he started to talk. The avengers hung on his lips as the words poured out of his mouth. It felt terrible to tell and it once again proved to Thor it must have been worse than hell for Loki to endure. When he was finally finished the other people on the plane were in different state of shock. Steve looked a sickly green, while Natasha had turned a little paler.

"Fuck." Clint muttered and Bruce let out a small noise of agreement.

"I just don't see how he ended up at Tony's though… Why would he go to his enemy while still wounded… ?" Steve pondered. It had been one of the things that had been bothering since he had found out the god was staying at Tony's tower. A business deal seemed a little strange and the fact that the man was far more protective of the god than he should be had set of the alarm bells.

"I believe Tony Stark and my brother have entered a relationship of an emotional nature." It would explain so much and at the same time absolutely nothing.

"Wait you mean he is actually dating your brother?" Clint exclaimed, all his previous discomfort forgotten.

"That is exactly what I mean man of arrows, were you not listening?" Sometimes Thor should really learn normal, contemporary English.

"I always knew Tony was an idiot, but really dating the god of lies has to be one of the worst things he has thought of." Clint seemed to find the idea thoroughly amusing.

"How do you even know all this?" Natasha asked, she had been silent so far, but with Natasha that could mean a thousand different things.

"I've seen them together. Loki cares deeply for the man of Iron and I think he feels the same way. Fenrir seems to agree with my assessment."

"Wait a second, the kid knew before we did? Dude, we really missed something haven't we…?" that seemed to put a damper on Hawkeye's mood.

"Do not fret, my friend. Fenrir is very intuitive, it's in his nature. I beg of you to keep silent though as my brother would not hesitate to flatten your city if he feels his way of life is threatened." Thor warned them.

"We will not say anything to them Thor, you can trust us." Steve gave everyone a sharp look, especially Barton. "What has all this to do with your father though?"

"My father still does not trust Loki. He believes him to be a threat still and wants Fenrir back at the island. Only my word and that of my mother is stopping him from acting out. He only has to get one reason for an attack and neither Loki nor Fenrir will be safe." It was weighing heavily on his shoulders and Steve felt terrible for the guy. Sharing a look with the rest of the avengers, they came to a decision.

"Loki and Fenrir will both be protected by us. He has served his time and like Tony said, they are innocent until proven guilty." Thor gave them all a blinding smile and Steve let out a sigh of relief when the weather seemed to get better as well. He really did not feel up for another plane crash.


	28. It's alright

It was a tradition to discuss mission back at Stark tower, away from Fury his prying eyes, and this time was no different. Even though Tony had not been involved this time around, he still liked to be updated on what was going on. He was one of the few that was never called unless he was really necessary, because he also had a rather large company to run. Tony enjoyed the surprised looks he got when they all took in the large tree that was now decorated perfectly.

"Wow, that is one big Christmas tree Tony. Isn't it a bit early though." Steve commented as they all found somewhere comfortable to sit.

"It is never too early to celebrate Christmas. I'm not into the whole Christianity crap though, so spare me the details please." Steve had been brought up old school, back in a time when faith had a much larger fan group, and Tony really did not want a bible study in his living room. Though he doubted Steve really was still that religious.

"Can we expect a large and awesome New year party then?" Clint called out as he inspected some of the decorations and Tony saw him smother a laugh when he spotted the small Loki and Tony miniatures.

"I'm not sure yet, I think I have some company party to go to, but you guys are all invited of course to that. It might actually make those things fun." His company had a reputation to uphold, which meant big parties with a lot of free liquor, but they also were dull as hell. "Now, who wants a drink?"

"Tony, it's two in the afternoon. Don't you think it's a bit too early to start drinking?" Steve and Banner both frowned at him.

"Relax, Captain Spangles. I'm talking about hot chocolate." Normally he probably wouldn't have blinked an eye at drinking this early on the day, but there was a kid living in his house now. He had to set some kind of an example. Steve his frown lessened and the entire team let out a chorus of agreements. He grabbed the things he needed from the cupboards and decided to ask Loki and Fenrir if they wanted something to drink as well. They had been spending their morning in the library together, though Fenrir had been using his tablet instead of reading an actual paper book. "Jarvis, find Loki and Fenrir and tell them to come to the kitchen if they want some hot chocolate." He called as the milk started to heat up.

"Right away, sir." The AI replied. Tony really felt great. He was actually celebrating Christmas and for once in his life and actually looking forward to it, Loki seemed to get better each day and the team wasn't so hostile towards the god anymore. Life was good.

Loki was aware of the team before he even got to the living room. Thor's booming voice, joined in by loud laughter could not be mistaken for anything else. He really didn't want to have a confrontation with them, but at the same time he felt like he was being cast out from his own home. Technically it was Tony's home, only after so many months of living in the place he had started to regard it as his own. He realized that it was probably not a good idea to get so attached to something, but he just couldn't help it. It had become somewhat of a safe haven for him, even if his mind still felt it necessary to torture him regularly. Raising his chin and squaring his shoulders , he entered the living room.

The silence was deafening to him and for a second he just wanted to run back to the library and ignore those idiots. Thor however immediately rushed over to him to pull him in an enormous bear hug.

"Brother! It is so good to see you!" Really, what was up with the brute? He usually wasn't that much of the touching when Loki was around. Well, he once had been, but that seemed like a long gone memory. The feeling of those strong arms locking around him, making it difficult to move, made him stiffen. It was rather stupid, because this was Thor for god's sake, but still the muscles so rightly wound around him to keep him from moving felt terrifying.

"Thor, let go." He hissed in the big guy his ear and was happy to see that his brother listened. "What in Odin's name has gotten you so energized?" He questioned.

"I think Thor is rather susceptible to sugar…." Banner told him, which didn't really explain anything. "He got one of the candy canes." He answered at the questioning eyebrow, while he pointed at the tree.

"Ah, I see…" Something seemed different about the whole band of misfits. Barton seemed to avoid looking at him entirely, while the Black Widow seemed intent to study his every move. So did the beast now he thought about it. Thor, who now had let go of him refused to meet his eye. With a sickening realization he understood exactly what had changed: They knew. Suddenly it didn't matter anymore that Thor had fought for him to keep Fenrir. That Thor had defied father for him. This truly was the worst betrayal his adoptive brother could have ever done. He didn't even wait to see if Tony knew anything about it, as he just walked in with his hands full of mugs, he just disappeared.

Tony was more than a little surprised to find Loki teleportate himself out of the room. He had never used that trick inside the house and hadn't he just been coming to get a cup of cocoa? Putting down the mugs he looked between al of the Avengers, who seemed to be avoiding meeting his eyes.

"Will somebody please explain to me what the fuck just happened?" he had to stay calm, there wasn't any proof yet they had done anything wrong.

"It is all my fault, man of iron. I have told the team about Loki's punishment and my neglect to help him." Thor still seemed a little twitchy, but mostly just saddened. Tony looked at every single person separately and the only one daring enough to meet his eye was Natasha.

"You want to tell me.." He had to keep calm and not try to punch Thor, for he would probably just break his hand again. "that you told the people Loki has to fear the most on this planet your brothers secrets?" So much for calm, but at least he hadn't punched anyone yet. Damn, he didn't even know if Loki was still in the building. "Jarvis, where is Loki and what is he doing?"

"It seems that Mr. Laufeyson has moved to the roof and is currently blowing up some plants, sir." Thor seemed to flinch even more at that revelation. He would give Loki some time to cool off and deal with this first.

"How could you, Thor! He was willing to give you another chance, to try and work with you, and here you go and betray his trust!" Tony knew more of betrayal than he ever wanted to and he could understand how Loki would be feeling right now. He had even talked the god into trying again, what a fucking fool he had been.

"Tony, he is only trying to help. At least Loki now has our support should Odin ever come again." Steve interjected on his friends behalf.

"God damnit, Steve! Loki doesn't need your goddamn support if it comes with a healthy dose of pity. All he needs is to know he can trust the people around him and Thor just shot all of that to hell!"

"Look dude, I get where you are coming from okay, but Thor meant well. If it means anything; yes I pity the guy, but I also think he is pretty brave to be able to still walk and talk. If I was him I probably would not have gone out ever again." Clint always had a rather blunt way of saying things, but it felt nice to know that the one person, who had more reason than anyone to hate Loki, was truly on his side.

"Look, we all have some demons in us we are fighting Tony. I'm not saying they are all the same, but we can relate to the guy." Bruce, his sciencebuddy. He wanted to see that silver lining that the team finally was willing to put aside all differences and help the guy. That they would learn to tolerate and maybe even like Loki, but all Tony could think of was the betrayal.

"Yeah, well at least all of you were able to tell your secrets in your own time. Do you know how much it took for him to talk to me? The only reason I know everything is because Jarvis had to do body scans when I was trying to patch him up. I wasn't there and even I know it was brutal, vicious and humiliating. For god's sake, they broke him Bruce. They broke him into a million little pieces and the first thing he came to do was thank me for shooting a fucking nuke into a portal." Thor whimpered as the words poured from Tony's mouth, as if he was being physically beaten.

"He will get over this, you know. As long as we treat him normally, he will get over this." Natasha sounded so certain that all Tony wanted to do was believe her.

"My brother will never forgive me for my betrayal." Thor mourned. Tony felt a little sorry for the guy because he knew Thor would never want to hurt Loki intentionally.

"I think it's better if you guys just go, okay? I'm going to talk to Loki anyway." As everyone walked to the door, Clint stayed a little behind. "What is it?"

"Well just to let you know, before we forget to tell you this, but Thor also mentioned you sleeping with Loki…" Hawkeye trailed off, not quite knowing if he should look at Tony and he himself was actually rather surprised they knew about that part as well. "You know, not that there is anything wrong with it, but I never actually thought you were gay…"

"Not Gay, Barton, that would mean I only sleep with guys. Did you never hear the rumors that I sleep with anything?" He gave a little grin, even if he wasn't feeling it exactly.

"Ah well I thought those were just lies spread by your one night stands. But it's cool you know, just saying." As the door closed behind the archer Tony let out a sigh. He really wished he had punched Thor, but at least they had his back in this mess.

He wasn't sure if Loki had stopped shooting things because he was tired or because there wasn't anything to blow up anymore. It didn't really matter anyway. All that mattered was the god sitting on one of the ruined tables.

"Wow, well I was planning to redecorate this place anyway." He told him as he sidestepped all the mess on the ground.

"Just go away, Tony." Oh, the use of his first name. If Tony had not already picked up on the severity of the situation that would really have hit it home for him.

"I don't think so. Now will you please talk to me." He took a spot next to the god, who still was refusing to look at him.

"What is there to say…your friends know about what happened to me….they probably know all the gory details of the….unsavory things." Once again he noticed that Loki refused to use the word rape. It always had been a vague description, but never the actual word.

"Loki, can you say this: They raped me." It was a blind shot, and to be honest not really the issue here, but Tony needed to know if the god was still in denial of what happened to him.

"I don't see why that has any bearing on the current situation." The refusal did not sit well with Tony.

"Just say it Loki. There is nothing wrong with it, just say the words." He kept his tone soft and low, making sure that Loki knew it wasn't a demand and he would not be pushed should he refuse to say it.

"They…they raped me." The words were rushed, as if he was ripping off a band aid. Grabbing one of the freezing hands, he should have brought his coat with him, he started to massage it with his thumb.

"Now say it slowly and think about them carefully…" he upped the dosage of massaging the man's hand.

"They…raped…me." God, there was so much pain behind those words. So much agony, as if the man was only just realizing what really had happened to him. It probably felt that way to him at least.

"It's alright, Loki. It's alright." He placed one of his arms behind the other man his back and pulled him in for an awkward hug. He wasn't sure whether he felt relief or agony when he felt the man tremble and his clothing being soaked with shed tears.


	29. Terrors and nighttimes

Fenrir knew he had been blessed with a rather calm life, for he had no need to fear things on his island. The only really frightening thing he ever had encountered was the moment he realized they had left him truly alone. Even the episode with Seth had been nothing in comparison to what he was seeing now.

He had known his father had been in some sort of distress when he finally came down from the roof with Tony. His eyes had been puffy and red and he seemed to lean heavily on the smaller man for support. When he had tried to ask what was wrong, Tony had waved his hand mouthing that he would explain it the next day. The memory however had plagued Fenrir the rest of the day, so he had been on high alert when he heard the scream from down the hallway. He really wished he would have listened to Jarvis when he was warned not to enter the bedroom.

The image of his father writhing on the bed, lost in his own head, would haunt him forever. His first thought was that Tony was attacking him as the man was holding Loki by the shoulders, pressing him down against the bed. He dismissed the idea immediately however when he spotted the big vacant eyes. His father was having a nightmare, reliving some kind of terrible memory. The muscles in the body were coiled tightly and his mouth was opening and closing as a fish on dry land. Occasionally there came a high keening sound from the man's throat. It looked horrifying.

"Get away." Tony yelled at him, pulling him out of his terrified trance. It was only then that he realized that his father's fingers had green strands of magic wrapped around them. If he lashed out it would end up very bad. "Get out of here." The smaller man yelled once more as he tried in vain to keep the pale god from hurting himself. His legs felt like lead as he stumbled out of the room where he promptly slid down the wall. Prancer immediately took his place in his lap. It was a small comfort after what he had just seen. He looked up as Tony came out of the room, he was covered in sweat and seemed exhausted.

"Is he always like this?" Fenrir asked as the man slid down the wall next to him.

"No, he isn't. There was just a lot of mess today that sparked a fall back. He is alright now, or at least he is unconscious. He strained himself too much and eventually his brain just shut down." He felt sorry for Tony, if this was a fall back he must have dealt with it before. To see this happen over and over again and knowing he could do nothing about it must be excruciating.

"What happened to him?" He could not envision any memories so terrible that they would cause such a reaction.

"How much did he tell you? I'm not sure exactly how much he would want you to know…"

"Not much really. He told me the basic story of what happened before he was taken to prison and that he had served his time." He knew his father had left out the details, but he had made it very clear that he had been the bad guy in the story. There had been no molly coddling on that part.

"When your father was in his prison, there were some terrible people who did even worse things to him. You don't really need the details and I am pretty sure you don't even want them, but let's just keep it on the fact that while the physical part has been healed, your dad has some mental problems he needs to fix. Today was one of the worse days and I hope it will not be repeated, but just promise me you will not go into the room again when you hear him scream. You saw the magic and how vulnerable he was, Loki does not want you to see him like that…" Well, if anything he didn't want to see his father like that either. This would cause him enough nightmares as it was.

"I promise." The man next to him looked nothing like the energetic kid that had been running around Christmas stores yesterday. He just seemed old and weary and Fenrir couldn't help but wonder how often people saw this side of him. The mature and older side.

"Sir, Mr. Laufeyson has awoken." Fenrir didn't say anything as Tony entered the bedroom. He just got up and went back to his own bed, hoping he could find something to read that would keep his mind of what he had just seen. Tony would take care of his father.

"You look like shit." Were the first words he spoke to the just awakened god, who favored him with a glare.

"I feel like it too." Loki murmured as he tried to sit up. "What on earth happened?" The voice sounded like someone had pushed a piece of sandpaper down his throat. Tony really wasn't surprised with the amount of screaming and whimpering the god had done. He still felt shaken up by those terrible sounds.

"You had a nightmare and then proceeded to black out." He entered the bathroom and retrieved a pain killer and some water. The god must be having a head ache. Tony had awoken from feinting a couple of times before and it always left you with a throbbing in your brain. Not to mention the fact that his head had taken quite a trashing with the headboard. "Here, it's a painkiller. It will help." He felt a little better when the god downed the glass of water and seemed to relax a little. He himself still felt tense between the shoulder blades. Worried that the moment he would calm down Loki would start shaking and screaming again.

"I regret you had to see that." Loki muttered and for a moment tony wondered if he should tell him about Fenrir. He would figure it out anyway.

"I think you should talk to Fenrir tomorrow, he came to see what was happening as you made quite a lot of noise…" He felt bad for making the god feel even worse about the situation, but keeping information from someone with so much trust issues didn't seem like a great idea either.

"Damn, I wished to keep that from him. What did you tell him?" For someone so impossibly tall, he seemed very small now in the bed, curled up in the middle of a large heap of pillows.

"I only told him that some people had done terrible things to you in the prison and that you were still recovering. I gave him no details and made him promise to never go into the room again." Maybe he should offer a little more comfort to the man on the bed. Right now he felt like an idiot, standing next to the bed doing absolutely nothing but talk about things that made the god feel even worse.

"I suppose I do need to talk to him as I can only imagine how this must have seemed to him." Tony sat down next to the man and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"You weren't in control Loki. You could have done nothing to prevent this and he will understand that. He's a smart kid." His words didn't seem to have much effect on Loki but the touching seemed to help. It made Tony wonder how often Loki had been held as a child. He seemed to crave affection in the physical way more than anything. With a dad like Odin, he figured it probably wasn't often Loki could have felt the innocent touch of a hug or a pat on the back. He could only imagine a small dark haired kid, wishing for affection he never got. It really came as no surprise to him that he could easily replace that green eyed boy with a brown eyed one that looked exactly like him. They had both been standing in the shadow of someone they could never become. For Loki it had been Thor, the favored son, and for Tony it had been science and a long believed dead super hero.

The sheets felt clammy beneath him and the room smelt musky of sweat and heat. "Jarvis, please air the room for a bit." He called out as he got up. "You should change in something a little less sweat soaked. I'll just change the sheets in the meantime." It was a testimony of the shape Loki was in when he didn't even protest but just got up and grabbed the stuff he needed. He saw the legs tremble and wanted to reach out when the god tumbled a little, but he knew Loki would not appreciate it. He was already being dependent on Tony and would probably not feel comfortable with accepting help with things he could fix himself.

Once he had changed the sheets and changed his own smelly clothes as well he crawled underneath the sheets. God he was tired. It had been an emotional day and he had gotten hardly any sleep before Loki had started his thrashing. When he looked at the god who crawled in next to him, he realized the man looked just as bad as he felt. It felt strange seeing the man hesitate on where to put his body. The last few weeks had been spend with him curled up against Tony and now he all of a sudden seemed unsure on whether he was still wanted there. Well the genius still wanted him there. He held out his arm and Loki gracefully moved to lay down beside him. The billionaire could feel all the muscles beneath that pale skin still tremble with over exertion. The same way he always got when he had a major adrenaline rush. Time for the big guns then.

He placed one hand in the curly dark locks, while he let the other hand trail soft patterns over the man his back and his side. He felt a few drops hit his neck and he realized that Loki was crying. "Hey, it's alright…." Those words really seemed to be his mantra for the day.

"I know that Stark." The god snapped. Clearly he was feeling frustrated and Tony was pretty sure it wasn't with him.

"You know, I never cried once when my parents were buried. Everyone thought I was just trying to stay strong at the funeral and I got so many compliments for that. To be honest I don't think it had really hit me then that the two people I had called parents for so many years were just gone. It wasn't like I particularly liked them, but they were my parents you know…" He was trying to get the god to stop focusing on his own black and bleak memories and realize he was no longer in that terrible place. He wasn't sure why he had picked his parent's funeral as a story, but it seemed fitting somehow.

"Why are you telling me this?" Loki mumbled.

"Hush, I'm not finished yet. I didn't cry for six months after that and then one day out of nowhere I started and I just couldn't stop. Really embarrassing to, because it was right in front of a girl I had just slept with. I don't think she ever called me back. Anyway, in the end I felt a certain relief you know. I had put it behind me, done the logical thing and I could just move on." Really, what was his point with telling the story again?

"Are you saying I should cry my eyes out in the hope that I can let everything go after that?" Loki seemed rather skeptical of the idea, and to be honest so was Tony.

"No, I'm just saying it's logical you know. I will not think less of you for crying, because you might be a god, but you are also very much a person…." God he should have become a philosopher.

"Stark…"

"Hmm…?"

"You are a terrible psychiatrist." Or maybe not…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This Chapter is dedicated to Nivala who has made a beautiful piece of fanart for this story and is just totally awesome really. Here is the link to the piece of art: scream-stay-night.deviantartart/The-stories-untold-Fanart-Colour-314076636


	30. Icing on the cookies

"Tony told me you saw what happened last night." Loki murmured as he sank down on the couch next to his son. Fenrir looked up from his tablet and after a moment of hesitation placed it on the table. Loki took this as a sign to continue talking.

"When I was taken back to Asgard, after the fight, I was sentenced to two years maximum prison with my lips sewn shut. While the sewing was certainly painful, the sentence itself was a rather light punishment. You have to understand that in my centuries in Asgard, I caused quite a few problems and not all of them were merely annoying." He paused for a second, remembering all the things he was so ashamed of now. "I was punished for them accordingly, but most people never forgot them. They believe me to be the son of evil, if not evil in itself. No punishment would ever sooth their hatred for me. Not unless they were able to do it themselves…."

"Tony told me they did things to you while you were in your prison." Fenrir interrupted his monologue. "Is that true?"

"Yes, things they would never have gotten away with had my Magic not been bound. Once I was released from my bonds I was barely strong enough to teleport here."

"Why did you go here? You and Tony weren't friends then, were you?" He was surprised that Fenrir had no more questions about his captivity, but his son probably already had an idea of what probably had happened in that cell.

"No, Stark and I most certainly were not on friendly terms back then…" So much had changed in such a short time. "Stark however had saved me from the Chitauri by his actions during the battle and I felt I should let him know he had my gratitude for it, however unwanted as it was."

"How did you actually end up staying? I never got to hear that story."

"I wasn't planning to and I actually am not exactly sure what happened after my teleportation failed, but according to Stark I feinted and he proceeded to offer me a room when I woke up." Of course it hadn't been offered quite like that, but he didn't need to tell his son he only got the room because Stark thought him to be interesting. He already had the wrong idea about them, or maybe the right one that Loki just didn't want to admit to.

He looked over at the man who was sitting in the kitchen with his own tablet. He knew Tony had decided to sit in that particular spot so he could keep an eye on the proceedings. The man had almost seemed more nervous about Loki talking to his son than Loki himself has been. He turned his attention back to his son once again when they were joined by Prancer, who immediately made himself comfortable between the two men on the couch.

"He likes you a lot, you know." Fenrir muttered as he petted the dog, who immediately rolled onto his back for a more thorough petting.

"I know, you already told me that." He wondered why the boy was repeating such trivial information. He already knew the dog liked him.

"I'm not talking about Prancer."

"Who are you….oh you're talking about Tony, aren't you?" Fenrir gave him a look that told him he was an idiot. "What makes you think he holds any affection for me?"

"I know you guys think I'm not as sure about people and their affections because I've spent most of my life in reclusion, but any fool can see he likes you, you know. He isn't the same with you as he is with me or the team, even Thor thinks you two are together." Loki refuses to admit that his cheeks started to feel a little warmer. The mentioning of his brother makes him remember the betrayal though, which returns his mood to a little more sour disposition.

"Yes, Thor just couldn't keep that big trap of him shut." He doesn't want his son to take sides in the dispute between him and Thor, for he knows how much the boy admires his uncle. He just can't stop the venomous feeling that settles in his stomach every time the man is mentioned.

"He didn't mean to hurt you…" Fenrir sounds once again like the innocent boy he truly is. He almost seemed like a split personality. On one side you had the ageless god who had lived centuries, and on the other there was a teenage boy who had missed his father for far too long.

"The problem with Thor is that he often doesn't mean harm, but does end up causing trouble." Loki sighed as he put his head in his hands. "He never seems to learn from his mistakes."

"If it means anything, he does seem to accept your feelings for Tony."

"My feelings, who says that Stark his affections are in any way returned?" the boy wasn't wrong, but he had hoped he hadn't been too obvious in his feelings.

"Don't worry I will not tell him, but seriously can't you two just admit it, because everyone already thinks you are sleeping together anyway…" One could not deny that Fenrir was still very much a teenager.

Tony looked over at the couch where Loki and Fenrir were having a conversation and the older god clearly seemed uncomfortable with the subject. That in itself wasn't too surprising considering the reason for the talk anyway. He was curious though about what exactly was going on. He could easily go there and join them, but this was one of those family moments that even he knew should be left alone. The strange thing was; they were a family really, or at least it felt like they were.

Fenrir and him had been bonding over the newest technology and designs, while the boy still trained every day with his father to better his control of magic. Hadn't he himself thought the only thing that had been missing was a kid to disrupt their sleeping patterns? Fenrir was perhaps a little older than the kid he had in mind, but it was Loki's son nonetheless. God, he was going insane imagining them as a family. It only for the fact that they put a whole new meaning to the word 'dysfunctional'. He was Iron Man and a superhero (sort of), Loki was an ex-super villain and a god and 'their' son was a god and a gigantic wolf in his true form. Well, Tony never had been one for normal in the first place.

He grinned as he read the message from the British Stark Industries. They liked the building Fenrir had designed, that would probably put the two Laufeysons in a better mood. He didn't like to say it out loud and definitely not to the god's face, but he was worried about Loki. Physically he was healed, but the scene from yesterday caused a major relapse. It had taken them weeks before the god had been able to sleep through the night without having a nightmare. Tony really hoped they didn't have to go through that process once again.

"Oy, you two. I just got a message from England. Your building idea got approved." He hoped he hadn't interfered anything particularly interesting.

"I knew it." Well the boy definitely didn't lack self-esteem.

"Never doubt a god's ideas." Loki added to it. 'Smug bastards' Tony thought.

"Yeah, yeah, no need to rub it in. Whose up for cookies?" he had been scouring the internet for fun things to do during the winter and baking had been one of the things to pop up.

"I wasn't aware we had any."

"No, I know that Loki. We are going to make them ourselves. I made sure we have all the ingredients." Fenrir looked rather excited, but the older god looked rather doubtful.

"Jarvis, how big is the chance of success when you put Stark in a kitchen?" Loki really had no faith in him.

"About 10%, Mr. Laufeyson. I do not recommend this endeavor." Clearly his AI had forgotten who his maker was. Deciding to threaten the machine with dissembling later he moved towards the kitchen.

"The fun is in trying to make them, try to have some fun Lokes." He called over his shoulder. He felt rather smug when Fenrir told his father the same while rushing into the kitchen.

In theory the recipe should have turned out perfectly. The right amount of ingredients had been added, the oven was in a perfect state and the timing had been just right. 'It was the same as chemistry really.' He had exclaimed as they measured the ingredients and he always had been good at that subject. That was the theory at least.

What really happened was slightly too much salt, too little water and Loki had not mixed the dough long enough. In the end they had salty and easily crumpled cookies on a plate. They looked rather sad, even if the figures were cheery reindeer faces. Loki had not enjoyed the reference.

"What do we do now?" Fenrir asked as they had cleared up most of the mess.

"I'm not eating them, that's for sure." His father grumbled as he looked at the cooling cookies. The fun wasn't in eating them anyway. He had fun making them and they certainly weren't finished yet.

"We decorate them." He said as he pulled out little cups and started to mix stuff up for the icing. They had green, red, white and blue to put on the cookies and Tony was looking forward to making one look more like Loki. He put the cups in the middle of the table and gave everyone spoons and such to put them on the cookies. It really was so very domestic that he had to stop from grinning like a mad fool.

He had gotten so caught up in his decorating that he didn't notice the mischievous twinkle in Loki's eyes. He however did notice it when a large dot of green icing slid down his cheek. It took him a second to realize that, yes; the god had actually thrown food at him. With deliberate motions he removed the icing with his finger and proceeded to lick it off, very, very deliberately. He was rewarded with slightly widened green eyes.

"You are going down." He told the tall man as he flicked his own spoon of icing at him. Seeing the blue goo stuck to Loki's forehead had both him and Fenrir cracking up. The war had begun and soon all kinds of colors were flying across the kitchen, covering all three of them in a layer of colorful mess.

In the end they ended up sitting against the kitchen cabinet trying to catch their breath. Tony's hand was lying right next to Loki's between them and reacting on an impulse he entwined their fingers. Loki turned his head to look at him.

"I told you the fun was in making them." The god rolled his eyes, but the small grin told Tony he was right.

"You're a mess." A long pale finger reached out and swiped away a little icing from his face. He was surprised when Loki brought the finger to his mouth and sucked off the sweet decorative substance. Pulling the god toward him he kissed him full on the lips.

He tasted of icing and chocolate mainly, but there was a certain undertone that was pure Loki and it was very addictive. Bringing a hand up to caress the gods face he tried to pull the man in even closer and if the clawing hands at his shirt and neck were any indication Loki wanted it too.

"Come on, you two! There are children present. Seriously dad, I told you to tell him not show him in front of your son." Fenrir was standing up and walking out of the kitchen with a hand covering his eyes and Tony let out a small chuckle. For a moment he had forgotten the boy was there. Wait a second….

"What does he mean when he says you need to tell me something?" Tony looked at Loki, who for all the jokes about his helmet truly looked like a deer caught in headlights.


	31. Being a hypocrite

Loki didn't answer him. Instead he got up and started to clean up the mess they had made of the kitchen. The green tendrils that covered his hands could not hide the fact that they were shaking and Tony's insatiable curiosity was piqued. He had an idea of what the god was supposed to tell him, but he needed to hear him say it.

"Loki…." He whined.

"It's nothing Stark. Just leave it." The tall man snapped.

"Come on…it's something. Fenrir wouldn't have told you to tell me if it wasn't something important." He kept his tone light and teasing, but Loki clearly wasn't in the mood anymore.

"I said leave it!" He snapped.

"Hey, if this concerns me I have a right to know!" Really, why couldn't the god just come out and say it.

"By the nine Stark, don't you ever know when to just shut up!" He had not expected such an explosion. He could only watch in silence as Loki stormed off, leaving him in a one again spotless kitchen. Why had the man not just told him what he had wanted to hear. 'Why didn't you just tell him yourself?' His mind jabbed at him. He had a good reason not to tell the god, really, he just needed to remember what it was.

Five hours later he was in his lab, drowning out his thoughts by blasting ACDC from the speakers and keeping his hands occupied. He wasn't distracted by thoughts of Loki…he really wasn't. Every time the green eyed god popped up he tried to push away the image by focusing even more on the project he was tinkering with. He wouldn't let someone get the best of him. No one was allowed to distract him from his work, that just wasn't how things worked with him. He never cheated on his work by thinking of something else…someone else. Yet here he was.

"DAMN HIM!" He yelled as he threw his glass of scotch against the wall where it shattered into a million pieces. Slumping down against his desk, he tried to figure out how this had happened. How had he let himself go so much?

He had always been careful when it came to relationships. Well no, that wasn't exactly true, he had never wanted one. Especially the betrayal of Obadiah showed him that you should never trust someone else to take care of things for you. Pepper had been the closest he had ever gotten to getting emotionally attached, in a romantic sense, and even then he had been hesitant. He had always known she loved him more than he loved her. Mind over matter. As long as the brain could make logical decisions he would be fine if things went wrong.

And now there was Loki. Funny, smart, hot Loki. The god was nothing like his previous conquests, he hadn't even made it that far, and still Tony had gotten attached to him. He could admit to himself that he loved the guy, but he had just believed it to be a phase really. Loki would never feel the same…or at least that was his previous assessment. As long as he could believe it to be a phase, he could make rational decisions. This fight however had him distracted and annoyed however. He couldn't even really blame the god for it as it was mostly aimed at himself. He had pushed and Loki had snapped. He was the one that should apologize, but what should he say?

Was he supposed to tell the man that he was fine with Loki keeping things from him, because the god would see through that in a minute. He didn't feel fine with the god keeping things from him. Not when they involved him. He didn't Loki to tell him every single thing he thought in detail, or the full story on what happened in Asgard, but this was something big.

"Jarvis, what am I supposed to do about this?" He groaned as he dropped his head on the table.

"You could start by cleaning up the glass, sir." The disapproving tone and the sarcastic quip told Tony exactly whose side the AI was on.

"Come on Jarvis, I wasn't that terrible. I just wanted to know. He could have just told me…" He didn't care if he sounded like a petulant child, he could disable the machine if he ever told a soul about it.

"I believe you are being a hypocrite…..sir."

"I am not being a hypocrite you big ball of wires! Loki could have told me but instead he threw a hissy fit." Tony grumbled.

"You mean he is acting like you…sir." His machine really was too damn smart.

"I….okay, fine. I would have done the same. It still doesn't tell me how to solve the god damn problem.." he needed to stop worrying about Loki. He wanted the silence in his head back. He wanted to have fond memories on his membrane not these violent outbursts.

"Maybe Mr. Laufeyson will be more inclined to tell you if you confess something first." No sir this time, perhaps asking his machine for advice had made the thing too cocky. Jarvis was right though. Loki was far more vulnerable than he was and still he felt a need to have the god saying it first. He had already figured out what Fenrir had meant by his comment, but Loki had no such reassurance on his part. For all he knew the god believed him to just be fishing for compliments. His decision made, he left the lab in search for an angry Norse god.

Loki refused to open the door when Fenrir knocked. Instead he told the boy he wasn't feeling well and send him off. Clearly his son had heard the argument, if you could call it that, in the kitchen and he didn't offer to get Stark. He was glad for it. He knew his son had meant well by it, but he just wasn't certain about any of it. He needed certainty when he made the decision to tell the man, maybe he never even would.

Tony Stark; billionaire, playboy, philanthropist and of course genius. How he infuriated Loki. The man was arrogant, annoying and childlike. Well at least, that was what he showed the world. The thing that Loki however hated the most about him, was the ability to look at him and understand. He understood Loki's need for knowledge, his need for security, his need for affection. He understood and he gave him exactly what he asked for without asking anything in return. It made Loki angry.

It wasn't that he was necessarily angry at Stark for doing it, Loki couldn't be more grateful really. That however was where the problem started. You never got things without having to pay for them. One way or another you had to relieve yourself of the debt being created. He just didn't understand what Tony was getting out of the whole deal, which made him wonder if one day the man was going to ask a favor of him that he couldn't refuse. The unknown was frightening and knowing Stark could take everything away in the blink of an eye did not help.

He knew he had gotten far too attached to the man and despite Fenrir's reassurance that Tony felt the same way, he found it very difficult to believe the idea. While he didn't want to admit it to himself, he knew the man deserved better. He was an ex-villain and was still far from accustomed to all the Midgardian traditions and such. No to mention the fact that he was a tainted man. While Stark showed no problems with that, he still had problems with it. How long would the man be willing to wait before deciding he had wasted enough time?

"Knock, Knock. May I come in?" The man in question asked as he opened the door.

"You are already in, and I doubt me telling you to go away would actually make you leave." Loki grumbled as he stayed seated on the couch that was facing the window.

"No, it probably wouldn't. Listen I just came to apologize. I shouldn't have pushed you." It was a grand gesture on Tony's part, but the god still felt rather terrible and vindictive.

"Is that all?" He said with feigned indifference.

"No, it really isn't." Loki didn't say or look at him until he was seated on the other side of the couch. He raised an eyebrow in question. "Look, I think I have a pretty good idea what Fenrir meant earlier and….well….you're not alone in it."

Loki wasn't stupid and he knew what the awkward movements indicated, but he needed to hear it. "What exactly do you think my son was talking about?" Not to mention the fact that watching Stark squirm was rather funny.

"You know exactly what Loki." The man whined.

"I'm afraid I don't know. How in Midgard's name should I know what goes on in that brain of yours." His heart was pounding a little harder than usual and he found it difficult to keep his composure.

"You're really going to make me say it, aren't you?" Loki would never say it out loud, but the man looked ridiculously cute at that moment. His hair was in disarray, eyes were wide and a faint blush was on his cheeks.

"Once again Stark, I have no idea what you are exactly…" He was cut off by a pair of warm lips covering his own in a soft kiss.

"I fucking love you, you fool." The man muttered as he pressed another kiss to Loki's lips.

"Really, you shouldn't insult the people you…" He couldn't help but smile at Tony's interruptions. He would gladly keep talking if the man kept kissing him like that.

"Just say it Loki." The genius growled.

"I'm not sure I…." When Stark pulled away from him in a mock threat he laughed. "Okay, fine. I love you too." After that oxygen became a rather sad excuse to break those heavenly kisses and Loki wasn't sure anymore if the lightheadedness was a result of that, or those beautiful words that Tony kept whispering against his lips.

"I love you."


	32. Consent

"Hey Fenrir, can we talk for a second?" Tony asked as he found the boy curled up on the sofa in the library. Loki was taking a shower and he was thankful for that. It meant that this conversation would go uninterrupted. He had left the room the moment the bathroom door shut behind the god. He wanted to get this conversation out of the way as soon as possible. Even if that meant talking to the kid only two hours after telling his father he loved him.

"Sure, something wrong?" Fenrir asked as he marked the page in his book.

"No, nothing to worry about. I just want to have your opinion about something…" God, why was this so difficult? "How would you feel about me and your father….dating." He hardly could ask Odin for permission and he was pretty sure Loki did not care for his opinion anyway. Fenrir however was a very important person in Loki's life, which meant that he had to accept Tony first.

"You do know I told him to tell you right…" The duh tone was so very much Loki that Tony had to crack a smile.

"I know, I just wanted to make sure you were okay with whatever is happening right now." An invisible weight fell off his shoulders as he realized the worst part was over.

"As long as I don't have to hear or see anything that will permanently damage me, I'm fine with it." Fenrir had picked up modern English a lot faster than his other family members had. It always rather amused Tony hearing the boy use slang, because it confused Loki quite often. He was pretty certain Fenrir did it on purpose.

"Oh no, of course not!" The thought of the boy walking in on them was truly mortifying. He had to tell Jarvis to automatically lock the door when private things were happening.

"Good, then that's settled." Fenrir picked up his book again, which was a clear sign the conversation was over. Loki was probably out of the shower anyway. "Oh, and Tony?" He turned around at the door. "Don't hurt him." For a moment the eyes flashed an orange/red, but the threat was very clear. If he hurt Loki he would get a gigantic wolf after him to tear him apart. Giving the god a salute, he finally left the room. It was a very good thing he wasn't planning to hurt the other god.

Loki had left the shower and was currently drying his hair with a towel. Another black towel hanging low on his hips. He looked gorgeous. He wasn't certain whether it was just part of them being gods, or maybe it was purely Loki, but he would never ever find someone else who was just as beautiful. Loki was perhaps damaged on the inside, but on the outside he was flawless. How could Tony aver give him up for someone else? Even with the damage done to him mentally, the man was more addictive than anyone else. The thought of spending the rest of his life with this flawed creature didn't seem terrifying at all anymore. The only thought that set his heart racing was the idea that one day he could lose him.

"Are you going to stare all day?" The god quipped and it took him a second to realize he had been staring at that smooth expanse of marble skin. That piece of pure perfection.

"That depends on whether I can do something with the thing I'm staring at….otherwise I'll gladly just keep looking." One dark eyebrow raised at the rather provocative comment.

"What would you like to do to the thing you're staring at?" It was the whole icing moment all over again. He swallowed as the god took a step closer. He was very much aware that the only thing between him and a totally naked god was a very flimsy towel. The thought was very, very tempting.

"Cat got your tongue…?" Well something needed to be done to that very demeaning smirk on Loki's face. Grabbing the tall man by the neck he pulled him in for a kiss. He probably had just brushed his teeth as the taste of peppermint was overwhelming.

"Jarvis, lock the door." He muttered between pressing kisses to the god's neck. It was rather awkward kissing him as the taller man was also trying to keep the towel from slipping. "You know, this would go a lot better if you could use both hands." He murmured as he placed his hands on the edges of the towel. For a moment he felt Loki still and he moved his hands away, guessing he had made the wrong choice.

"I'm not sure if that's a good idea…" The god whispered, but he did grab his hands to keep him from moving away.

"What's stopping you?" He kept his tone from sounding judgmental. He didn't want Loki to think he would use any emotional leverage to push him into doing things he wasn't ready for, but he did need to know what the god was thinking.

"I'm afraid I might get…..performance issues." Ah, not that Tony had ever suffered from it, but he could understand Loki's frustration.

"It's okay, you know. Do you want to try the tie thing again?" He placed a hand against the god's cheek, making sure the man was looking him in the eye.

"No, I trust you enough for that…I just cannot…" It was rather difficult to see someone be so terribly insecure about himself. Tony couldn't help but compare the man in front of him with the one he had met two and a half years ago. He loved Loki the way he was, but he really hoped the man would get his confidence back.

"Loki, I don't care if we do absolutely nothing but you need to explain things to me. I cannot help you if you don't tell me what goes on in that beautiful brain of yours." 'Please, stop making me feel so helpless.'

"I trust you, but I'm afraid I'm just not ready to…" The god swallowed hard and Tony felt terrible for putting him through it, but it needed to be done. "to let you have me." He almost didn't catch the words as they were spoken in such a rush.

"Then we will not go there." He brushed the pale cheek with his thumb and hoped the god would look at him again as he had closed his eyes in shame. "You can have me, if you want." There they were, those brilliant green eyes.

"You would do that?"

"Of course, I don't care what we do Lokes. As long as it's you and me, I'm fine with it." He pressed a soft kiss to those beautiful lips. He was treading in a whole new area as he had never been this gentle with anyone. He had never felt any need to use any tact or gentleness with Pepper as she had in his mind always known what she had been getting into. He never had wanted to make any large concessions for her. Now it felt natural, like it was a part of him. This wasn't a concession or a plot to get what he wanted, this was just something Loki inspired in him.

"I need time for that." The man muttered, leaning forward pressing his forehead against Tony's.

"Then you will get time." He would give him all the time in the world if he needed it.

"I want to try something else though…" Tony wasn't exactly sure how he had ended up on the bed with the god leaning over him, but he wasn't complaining. Loki grabbed the hem of his shirt and Tony lifted his arms to help him get rid of it. Soft, cold fingers touched his arc reactor and he let Loki trace it's contours without complaint. Once the god seemed to be finished with his examination of the metal he moved to the skin. Kissing and stroking every bit of that was exposed. He nearly missed the moment where Loki opened up his pants, but he willingly helped the god get rid of those too.

There was a moment of hesitation where they just stared at each other. Loki had dropped the towel long ago and for the first time Tony could truly see all of him. He was ruined for any other person out there. No one would look better than Loki did at that moment and there was no way he would ever want someone else. Loki in return seemed equally happy with what he saw if his reaction was anything to go by. His pupils were blown wide, his breathing had sped up and other parts of his body were clearly responding as well. The faint blush on those pale cheeks had Tony chuckling and he couldn't help but pull the god in for kiss. He hissed as a cool hand was placed on his cock. Their eyes met and he refused to break the contact as the man started to slowly move his hand up and down. Loki seemed unsure at first of what he was doing, but he was a quick learner and soon knew exactly what Tony liked.

Letting the god at it for a little while he decided to see if he could touch Loki without spooking him. He let his hands stroke the muscled stomach, slowly trailing down to where he wanted to go. The god's green eyes hadn't left his own brown ones and he silently asked permission to go further. Grabbing the man's shaft he slowly moved his hand up and down, getting a delicious moan from the god. He let his thumb go over the slit, using the pre-cum to make the experience more enjoyable.

Loki was still working him and he was sure he would soon come. Months of not sleeping with anyone and having Loki sleeping in his bed had been torture. He needed his release and if Loki's moans and sighs were anything to go by, so did he. The whole thing did feel a lot more intimate then most of his sexual experiences ever had been. He had never really looked down at what they were doing, instead he had kept his eyes on the god his face. Those green eyes that were wide with pleasure, the clenching of the jaw as he tried to keep the volume down, the black hair which was in disarray and the small sheen of sweat. He cried out as he spilled over his own stomach and Loki's hand. With a few jerks Loki joined him, which made the man collapse on top of him. Tony was surprised the god had actually been able to support himself the whole time on one arm.

He cleaned them up with a couple of tissues from the box on the bedside table and it was only then he realized the god was shaking. Loki had his eyes closed and his labored breathing slowly returned to normal.

"You alright?" He asked as the god, hoping nothing had caused some kind of flashback. He was surprised the find the green eyes glassy with unshed tears.

"I'm fine….I just never thought I could ever enjoy myself like that again. Thank you.." Tony pulled away the sheets from beneath the seemingly boneless god and covered them both.

"There is no need to thank me Rudolph." He muttered as he pulled the god against him. Already he could feel sleep settle in his bones. Loki seemed to be just as tired as he curled up against him. He wasn't sure if the god meant for him to hear it, but the softly whispered 'I love you' made him grin. It was probably the endorphins making the god this happy and honest, but it didn't really matter to Tony.

"I love you too."


	33. the waiting game

It had been a regular mission according to Fury when he had called on Tony that morning. Loki had just listened as the genius complained when he was called out of bed for some mischief makers downtown. When the man had left Loki had turned around and gone back to sleep in the blessed silence. So why was Thor currently in the living room looking like someone had just taken Mjölnir from him and no Stark in sight.

"Thor, you better have a good reason for coming here." Loki growled as he sat himself down on the couch.

"I know you currently harbor no good will towards me, but I felt you needed to know." A shiver slid down his spine as he prepared himself for whatever news Thor might have. "Tony Stark has been wounded during battle. He is not in good shape, brother."

It didn't matter that Loki had been expecting something like it, the words still felt like sledgehammers slamming into his chest. "What exactly is wrong with him and where is he now?"

"He was taking down by a collapsing building. His suit of iron kept him alive, but the doctors fear his brain might be too damaged to heal itself. They are keeping him at SHIELD's headquarters." Loki could have lived with broken bones, he could have probably even healed them, but a broken mind was not something you could save easily.

"Bring me to him." He hissed as he conjured a quick note for his son, explaining what had happened and where he had gone.

"Brother, I do not think it is wise. Fury will never allow it." Thor protested and for once Loki let the brother comment slide.

"Take me to him, or I promise you, I will flatten this city and all its inhabitants." He wasn't sure whether it was his determination or the threat that made Thor hold out his hand, but he quickly grasped it and teleported them just outside of SHIELD headquarters. He didn't need Thor for that part, but he did need the brute to get past all the security. Nobody said no to an avenger, not to mention a god, which would save Loki the trouble of using his magic too much. Who knew how much he would need to heal Tony, if it was even possible.

"What in god's name is he doing here?" Fury barked as he saw the two approaching gods. "I told every one of you specifically to not tell anyone else." He looked pointedly at Thor and Loki felt a sliver of appreciation that he had broken the rules.

"I think Tony would want him here." Natasha interrupted. The whole team was there and Loki hated the fact that nearly every one of them was in a near perfect state. A few bruises and minor scratches, nothing more. So why had Anthony been so unlucky?

"I don't care what that blasted idiot wants! I'm not letting…." The man was cut off as he was slammed back into the wall. His one eye staring angrily into two green ones.

"You'd do well not to insult Stark in my presence mortal, for I am in no mood to be messed with." He almost wished he could strangle the guy, just to vent some frustration, but Tony would probably hate him for it in the long run. Pushing the director aside he opened the door that kept him separated from his lover.

Long wires, dripping clear fluid into the body, ran from the arms and a plastic tube had been shoved down the genius his throat. The head was heavily bandaged and one of the legs was in a cast. Loki knew enough of Midgardian technology to know that those wires and that tube were the only things standing between Tony and imminent death. He slowly moved to the edge of the bed and sat down, making sure he didn't disturb any of the lifelines. He glanced at the clock that was suspended above the man's bed.

Had it really been only 11 hours since he had seen those brown eyes alive and vibrant. 11 Hours since he heard that voice grumble about annoying villains who woke up to early. That man was so much more than the corpse lying in this white room.

"The biggest damage was done to the head, smashing in the helmet and causing internal bleeding. Even if he regains consciousness, I cannot tell you if it will be the same man in there." Bruce Banner told him as he joined him in the room. Loki knew that the damage was too severe for him to heal. He was a master of magic, but he had never focused his studies purely on healing and he found now that he regretted not learning more about it. he was quite frankly wishing for a lot of things at the moment.

"I cannot heal him, but I know someone who can." Standing up resolutely he leaned over and pressed a kiss against the unresponsive lips. "I will get you back Tony. I love you." He didn't care that Banner heard him. Where he was going he might never return and he wanted there to be at least one person that would be able to confirm to Tony that he loved him.

Where he once might have admired the beauty that was Asgard, now he could only feel revulsion. He wanted to be home, with Tony and Fenrir and their terribly decorated Christmas tree. He accepted Heimdall's greeting graciously, their previous mistrust towards one another forgotten. Well maybe not forgotten, but certainly forgiven.

The first person he spotted that he certainly never wanted to see again was Fandral. The man seemed to pale at the murderous look on his face, which only spurred on Loki's anger. He had been much braver when Loki had been tied up, beaten, broken and without any power. Now all of sudden the man seemed to have better things to do than share a hallway with the God of Mischief. Pathetic. He didn't see anyone else on his route to the throne room. He was pretty certain the news that he was back had circled the hallways quickly and everyone had tried to evacuate as soon as possible.

He didn't wait for permission to enter, but decided to barge right past the guards, startling the rooms inhabitants. The All-father and his mother were seated in their respective spots and he had apparently broken up a meeting between them, Sif and Volstagg. He hesitated for a moment at the sight of them and immediately cursed his weakness. He was no longer bound and he would not behave like that any longer.

"Leave!" he barked at them and felt proud when he saw them bow and rush off. Apparently he still did carry his title now his imprisonment was over. He enjoyed the way Sif clenched her jaw in frustration when she had to address him as such.

"Loki, what's the meaning of all this!" His adoptive father yelled. Clearly angry at the intrusion. His mother however just looked torn between coming over to hug him or let him satisfy her curiosity first. As much as he hated to admit it, he did better show the old man in the room some respect for it was his permission he needed.

"I came to ask for your permission All-Father. I request to take some of our healing stones back to Midgard. A friend of mine is in dire need of them." He did not look the man in the eye out of respect, but inside he was seething with anger. Seeing Odin sit there on the throne, knowing he had left him to rot in the dungeons made him want to tear the whole of Asgard apart. Just so he could see the man's face when his whole world crumbled beneath him.

"Out of the question. Those stones belong to Asgard and I will not sent them to another realm." The last bit of hope flew out of the proverbial window. Without those stones Tony's mind would never heal and Tony wasn't himself without his mind.

"I beg of you to please reconsider. If not for me then think of Thor who is also friends with Tony Stark. Please, I beg you." It was beneath him, this groveling, but for Stark he would go to hell and back.

"I said no, Loki. They are mortal for a reason and we should not interfere with their lives." While that would have been a valid argument had it been natural causes, Loki felt it was misplaced here. Letting Stark die for being a hero and saving lives was just wrong. "I will trade my life for his if that's what's necessary."

"Odin, please. I've met Anthony Stark and he is a brave warrior. Far braver than many of ours. He deserves to be saved." Thank the nine realms for Frigga.

"If I give you back Stark, will you send Fenrir back to the island?" If Loki hadn't been so sure of his parentage he could have believed his deviousness came from Odin.

"You cannot possibly ask me to choose between them?" He exclaimed.

"Odin, I thought we had decided to let Fenrir be. The boy has been absolutely no trouble." Frigga snapped at her husband, but the look on his face made it clear Loki had to make a decision.

"I cannot choose between my son and the man I love and you know that very well. I can see there was no point in coming here." He would not cry in front of that devil, he just wouldn't. "Mother." He inclined his head toward her and strode out of the room.

"Loki, wait!" he heard Frigga call out as he was about to leave for the portal. He turned around just in time to open his arms to catch his mother in a hug. She pushed something into his hand and he was surprised to find a golden apple. "You know that I cannot guarantee you this will save him, but it's the only thing I can offer you. Please send Tony and Fenrir my love." He nodded as she pressed a kiss to his temple and reentered the palace. With a new ray of hope Loki left Asgard

"Loki, you cannot be serious!" Thor exclaimed as he realized exactly what the mush was that Banner was currently pushing through the tubes into Tony's stomach.

"As you can see I very much am." He snapped back. He was currently focused on healing as much of the damage done to the genius's body. The more that was healed the better the apple would get a chance to work his own magic.

"These apples are meant to make someone immortal. They are not meant for healing." Banner stopped his proceedings for a moment until Loki snapped at him to keep going.

"The apple will regenerate his cells quicker which gives his brain a chance to heal as it will try to erase all the damage done to the body. Stark has a chance to gain full brain activity again, if he will have a slightly longer lifespan after that it will merely be a bonus." He explained to both his brother and Bruce, after which the latter relaxed a little more.

"You might just make him immortal Loki! How can you be certain that's what the son of Howard wants?" Thor snapped back at him.

"He would need a prolonged diet of apples for that. With the damage that needs to be erased he would only gain about fifty years at most." Loki kept silent after that, deciding to keep his full attention on the draining efforts of healing Stark's body. The mush of apple was finally fully absorbed by the body and Loki was drained of all his magic. Sitting down in a chair next to the bed, he was left alone in the room by Banner and Thor.

After all was said and done, they could only play the waiting game.


	34. The apple dilemma

One week and absolutely no change. Where he first had still been able to cling to the hope that the apple would work, now only remained a numbness. Would the fates really be so cruel to him to take Tony from him just when he got him. He knew the thought sounded selfish, but the genius would not be the one left alone. He would be the one to go to the other realms where Hella would most certainly take care of him. Loki would however be torn apart, again.

He had heard the whispers out in the hallway whenever the other Avengers were there. Fury wanted to stop the machines. Tony apparently had signed something called a DNR and had also clearly stated he did not want to be kept on life support. He just needed more time to let the apple's powers run their course, but the more time passed the less certain he was of its outcome. He just couldn't bear the thought of losing the man lying so still in the hospital bed. He refused to answer any of the questions by the team. He did not utter a single sound and did not leave the room until Fenrir came to relieve him.

"Dad, you need to go sleep, take a shower…" The boy muttered as he gazed at the sleeping man. Loki spotted Steve in the doorway and figured the captain had retrieved his son.

"I cannot leave him here. I need to be there when he wakes up." He answered, his voice raspy from lack of sleep or fluids.

"You do not want Tony to see you in this state. Don't worry, I'll protect him." The hand that squeezed his shoulder was the first real physical touch he had in days. By the nine, how he wished Tony's fingers would squeeze his hand again. With a sigh of resignation he let go of the limp fingers and pushed himself up from his chair. For a moment the world tilted as the lack of sustenance and sleep caught up with him.

"Come on, I'll drive you back to the tower." It wasn't the first time one of the Avengers showed him kindness in the past few days. Bruce had brought him a pillow, a book by Natasha and Clint had just given him a small smile in reassurance. Apparently his constant vigilance over Stark's body had gained him their trust, or at least their compassion. While he had wanted some form of acceptance by them, as it would make his relationship with Tony a lot less strained, he did not find the irony of him gaining it by losing the man in question very funny. Fate was a cruel mistress indeed.

"I want to see Fury." Fenrir told Banner the moment Loki was gone. The man had come every day to check up on Tony's vitals and had arrived at the same time as Rogers.

"Why would you want to do that?" The curly haired scientist questioned as he adjusted one of the bags that leaked some clear liquid in Tony's veins.

"I want him to know what will happen exactly if he shuts down the machines." He would not let someone hurt Tony while he was helpless. He had heared the red haired woman and his brother talk about it when they came to see if he was okay. He needed to keep that from happening.

"Listen, Fury is only following Tony's wishes. He signed all the papers for it. It was Tony's choice and while I do not like it, we need to accept it." Banner looked older than ever before. Fenrir had met some of the team before this whole mess and he was certain that the black hair had contained a lot less silver.

"I know, but I'm certain he only needs a little more time. The apple will work, it just has to!" He didn't like the look on the man's face. It was too close to pity for his liking. It wasn't for him, it was for his father so the pity should not be aimed at him.

"I see Loki's not the only one who fell for the Stark charm. It's okay to be afraid you know."

"I'm not afraid." Even in his ears it sounded pitiful.

"We all love him, you know. Even Natasha. But this isn't living anymore. This is merely the body he is using. If things do not change for the better soon Fury will shut everything down and we can't do anything to stop it." He had heard them all whisper and with his excellent hearing could pick up the conversations in the hallway. Tony would die if he stayed like this.

"What did my father do to deserve this…" Loki would be destroyed if Tony died. He may not have heard the words 'I love you' spoken between the two men, but their actions said so much more.

"Just hold on hope for a little while longer. Tony isn't an easy one to kill." He felt the man pat his shoulder and a small woosh of air passed him as the door fell shut. While Fenrir knew the entire story of what had happened, and was happening, it was the first time he actually saw Tony in the hospital bed. If you took away the bandages and the tubes he could actually just been sleeping. The small scratches and broken leg had all been healed by his father while the apple was administered. The only thing left was the head still swatted in bandages.

"Come on Tony, come back to us. We still need to celebrate Christmas, which is in ten days so you better hurry up. I've read up on the feast and apparently gifts are exchanged…I don't think I will be able to get you one and I doubt father will remember with all this going on. I could ask Jarvis though if he could help me in the lab to make one. So you better wake up, because otherwise Jarvis will not be pleased and you know he refuses to do things for you when you displease him. I know he is a computer, but I think he misses you too. He is a lot less sarcastic without you around and despite all your complaints I know you like his sarcasm." He was just rambling. Not putting any filter between his brain and his mouth, but the room was just too silent around him.

He didn't like the idea of losing someone he had just gotten to know. Tony was funny and smart and he taught him how to use modern technology. "Just wake up, please." He mumbled as the man remained motionless on the bed. He didn't even notice he was crying until some of the salty water drops hit his hand.

Loki went through the motions in a daze. He took a shower, changed his clothes and even ate a bit of the food the captain placed in front of him. The house was so incredibly silent. Even the pitter patter of Prancer's paws could not make the tower feel warm and welcome again. He didn't even notice what he was doing until he was standing at the bed he and Tony shared. The shirt the smaller man slept in was still in a heap on the bed and the sheets were still messed up. Clearly Jarvis had decided to leave the room untouched until Tony could return to it.

Grabbing the shirt he fingered the material and after a second of hesitation pressed it to his nose. The overwhelming smell of metal, oil and just pure Tony made him feel safe, until he remembered this was just a shirt and eventually the smell would fade from it. He needed more than a small substitute. He needed the real thing, the man the shirt belonged to. He pulled the shirt over his own head and crawled into the bed, on Stark's side. He probably looked ridiculous in his nest of pillows and blankets, but the smell was a small comfort and soon he was drifting off to sleep.

When he awoke he reached out to see if the smaller man was next to him and panicked when he found the other side of the bed cold and empty. Seconds later he remembered why that was exactly. Tony wasn't here and there was a big chance he would never come back either. It hadn't really hit him yet, but now it came at him with full force. Like a bull going after a red flag.

Spending all his time since the accident at the hospital had made him forget reality. As long as he saw the chest rise and fall and feel a pulse beneath his fingertips he could pretend Tony might just open his eyes and tell him something snarky. That he was just asleep. Yet here, in the cold and empty tower, he couldn't pretend anymore. He could not lie to himself about what was happening or what was soon going to happen. The reality that he might just actually lose Tony finally set in.

His shoulders started to shake, his breathing started to come in short bursts as he tried to get the air around his suddenly blocked throat. After everything he was going to lose him to something as silly as debris falling. It must have been the realms their revenge for all the harm he had done and like his two sons, someone else paid the price.

The wetness on his cheeks felt achingly familiar as he remembered the night spend with his head in Tony's lap, hands combing through his hair, as he told the man his story. Never having that comfort again tore at Loki's already fragile state. He needed Tony to balance things, to call him out on his evasions and lies. He send out a prayer to whatever deity was still listening to spare the genius.

Despite his strong words he would not tear the city apart should the other man die, if anything he probably would leave Midgard as soon as possible. If Tony should make it, Loki realized, he would have to face the same problem in the end. The man was a mortal and even with all his brilliance and technology would not be able to stay alive forever. There were always ways around the problem. The golden apples would most certainly grant Tony eternity, but would he want to spend them with Loki? There were severe punishments for those who misused the power of immortality. He would face them for Tony, but would the man do the same for him if it came down to it?

"Sir there is a phone call for you, would you like me to open up the line?" Jarvis called out, interrupting his internal monologue.

Wiping away the tears and clearing his throat a couple of times he gave the AI his consent.

"Loki, this is Bruce. There has been a change in Tony's stats. Could you please come, I think you will want to be here." Loki could not decipher whether the news was good or bad, but he didn't hesitate for even a second to teleport himself.


	35. I'm sorry

"Is he awake?" Are the first words that leave his mouth the moment he is in Tony's room. Nothing seems to be changed, but clearly something has happened because the rest of the team are slowly arriving as well.

"Not exactly, but his brainwaves are spiking. See how once every few seconds the areas will light up only to die down again. I've never seen anything like this before." Banner tells him as he points at several of the screens.

"It's the apple, it's magic must have finally reached the brain." He murmurs, casting a diagnostic spell over the still body in the bed. "It's working, I can feel the power coarsing through him." His voice rises a few pitches as it begins to sink in that he will have Tony back in just a couple of minutes.

They are the longest minutes of his life and he pays no heed to the rest of the people that entered the room. All he wants now is to see those brown eyes look at him again with that pure adoration he had found so difficult to accept. Wants that mouth to spill sentences involving technological terms he would never understand, but still listens to them because they sound so beautiful coming from those lips. He nearly jumps when the hand underneath his twitches.

The rooms seems to be permeated with a heavy silence as everyone waits with bated breath on a true sign of life. The eyelashes flicker, once, twice and then they open. The eyes behind them are hazy at first, but soon they start to clear up and take in the room. Loki is startled when Tony looks confused to see him and withdraws his hand from his own pale fingers.

"Tony…?" He hesitates. The warning he had gotten at the beginning had not left him yet. 'He might not be the same man.' Then why did he seem to recognize the others.

"What is he doing here?" The voice sounds groggy and raw from disuse the past week. The tube that had been in his throat had not helped matters either.

"No…" Tony had forgotten him. He had erased him from the brain. That was what he got for praying to the deities; the man would live but not remember him. He backed away from the bed and rushed out of the room, sinking down against one of the walls. He let out a howl of frustration and pain. This was far worse than losing the man. Now he had to live with the knowledge that Tony Stark was alive, but would always stay out of his reach.

He looked up when a pair of boot clad feet came in his sight. "Tony's asking for you." The captain told him as he held out his hand to pull the god up.

"I don't want him to feel guilty. It's not his fault he forgot… Please do not torment me by facing him as a stranger." He muttered. He could not bear the thought of looking into those confused and distrustful brown eyes.

"He didn't forget. His brain was just resorting everything. He did just recover from mayor brain damage." Tony had not forgotten. Tony had not forgotten. It took a moment to set in. Once he had heard the news that the genius was waking up he had immediately wondered about what would go wrong. He could not be so lucky to have it all being given back to him. He followed Rogers wordlessly and they went back to the room. The rest of the agents were already leaving, giving Tony their wishes for him to feel better. Even Fenrir left the room, a knowing look on his face.

"Loki, I'm so sorry…" the man began, but Loki held up his hand to cut him off.

"It doesn't matter, not to me. I'm…glad you're okay." He seated himself on the bed and once again took the tanned hand into his own.

"Come on, you can do better than that." At his puzzled look, Tony continued. "Never heard of a welcome back kiss? According to my lovely teammates I have apparently not been kissed in the past seven days, it brings down my average you….." To make the man shut up, Loki pressed his mouth against Stark's. he had to admit he had missed the man's touch and kisses. He wanted it to just be a quick kiss, the mortal was healing after all, but the moment he pulled back Tony put a hand on the back of his head and forced him back down. Without actually realizing what he was doing Loki found himself straddling the smaller man. When the need for oxygen became too much he finally pulled away.

"Is this how you greet everyone when you come back from the dead? I believe you took them to a…shawarma? Place the last time." Tony's hair looked absolutely messed up now the bandages had come off and Loki couldn't help but twirl his finger through one of the longer locks. "Has Banner declared you healthy?"

"All healed, though he wants me to take it easy the next few days. I have you to thank for it, or so I've heard…you went to Asgard for me." It was a statement, not a question, but Loki knew that Tony wanted the story.

"In Asgard we have things called healing stones. They help focus your energy into healing, without them difficult healings can get rather explosive not to mention dangerous for the victim. Odin asked me to choose between taking a stone and sending Fenrir back to the island. Mother gave me the apple. It's usually meant to make mortals immortal…" He trailed off. It was now or never to see if Tony wanted to take the leap and give up being mortal.

"How much effect will this have on me?" Loki shuddered as one of the hands came up to play with the hairs in the nape of his neck.

"Now it will only add a couple of years to your life expectancy. With the damage done to your body it's lost a part of its potency in favor of healing you first. I'm guessing you will live to be about a hundred and twenty." The hand stilled.

"So I'm not immortal, yet?"

"No, you would need to eat a few more of the apples in quick succession. Would you want to become immortal?" This was it, no turning back now.

"No, I do not want that." Loki tried to move away from his position straddling Stark, but two firm hands held him down. "Listen, I do not mean that I don't want to spend all my days with you, but we live here on earth. This place is filled with things that will soon decay and fall apart. I love you, but I do not want to stay alive while my world crumbles down. The team, with the exception of Thor, will eventually all die. While I like the thought of winning, in that case I do not want to be the last one standing. I'm sorry."

"We could go to another realm, in Asgard you do not have to worry about all that." He whispered.

"And you would be unhappy there, besides as much as I complain about it Earth is pretty much my home." Tony shrugged.

"So you would rather see me suffer by losing you than suffer the burden of immortality together?" He could not deal with this. He did not want to think about losing Tony so soon after getting him back.

"Is there any way for you to become mortal? We could go to Hella together. Look Lokes, it's not that I do not love you or want to spend the rest of my life with you and the afterlife for that measure, but I just do not want to be the only one left alive in the end to talk to. I need more people than just you in my life and I cannot watch and see them die time and time again" He had not thought of leaving his own immortality behind for Tony. The man had a point. While Loki had never known anything but the fact that he would probably live forever, Tony had already accepted death as part of the road.

"I will think about it." He murmured, leaning down to capture those warm lips again. They had done enough talking for the day.

When he finally was allowed to return back to the tower, Tony couldn't be happier. He had been bored out of his mind in the plain room at the SHIELD headquarters and he could not spend his entire time with Loki in his lap there. Now back at his tower, with the tree twinkling merrily and a happy welcome home from Prancer and Fenrir, he couldn't be better.

He knew that Loki had suffered a lot more than he had, simply because of the fact that he had not been aware of what was going on. He had lost a week of his life and did not even notice it really. The tall god however seemed to cling to him every moment just so he could make sure his heart was still beating. Tony wasn't complaining, but he understood their relationship needed to have some bonding time in a slightly more private setting. He had texted Jarvis a little while earlier to make sure his room was on the romantic setting, under the pretense of texting Rhodey to tell him he was okay.

The romantic setting had actually been more of a joke than serious thinking. He figured his conquests would enjoy the mood it would create, but he usually forgot about it and never had needed it to get them into the mood. Now however, when looking at Loki's surprised face, he did not regret ever programming it.

The ceiling had small twinkling light on it, giving off the impression of a starry night sky. Thanks to a projector there were candles glowing on every inch of the wall. It was a simple change in decoration really that could be removed by the press of a button, but it did the trick of charming Loki. The warm yellow of the lights made Loki's eyes greener and his pale skin seemed to simply reflect the light. He was rather literally glowing. He had wanted to go for the slow approach, but seeing the god standing there in front of him made it rather impossible.

Teeth clashed, tongues danced and moans were exchanged. It didn't take long for them to get rid of the clothes they were wearing. The silk of the maroon bed spread felt great on his feverish skin, but Tony had different ideas than letting Loki take all the control once again. He flipped them over so he was leaning over the god and was happily surprised when the man did not stiffen. Bending down he bit at the pulse point in Loki's neck and then soothed the red mark with his tongue. If the tugging and tightening of the hands in his hair were any indication, he was doing pretty well. He moved down the pale chest placing open mouthed kisses on any spot he could find that had the simplest of blemishes.

It took a while to get to the place he wanted to go, but by then he had the god breathing heavily and moaning with want. He decided to not torture Loki too much and immediately took the head of the cock in his mouth. Looking up he found a pair of green eyes, nearly black with lust, stare at him in surprise. Making sure he kept the god watching he lowered his mouth inch by inch until his gag reflex started to slightly protest. It was a rather big turn on to see Loki prop himself up on one arm to keep watching, It was sinful how that neck looked when thrown back in ecstasy and Tony let his hands join the stimulation of Loki's member. He felt the grip on his hair tighten as he was pulled off the panting go and up for a kiss.

"Don't want it to be over too soon, now. It's my turn, my love. " the god whispered at him and Tony had no problem at that moment with following orders.


	36. All I want for christmas

"Oh, God!" Tony groaned as he felt a warm mouth on his member. He only had a second to realized the truth in that statement before Loki's tongue blew all the sane thoughts out of his head. He was pretty sure the man was using some of his Jotun gifts as his tongue felt colder than usual. It had the same effect of pressing a cold towel to someone's neck in a heat wave. The spots would feel cold for a second only to immediately warm up again. His hands curled in the sheets as he tried to keep himself from moaning too loudly. It really should not feel this good.

"Loki….." he whined as the mouth left him with a soft pop. Loki crawled back up to him, kissing him full on the mouth. He rarely slept with men and females usually did not give him any head. The salty taste of himself on that sinfully good mouth made him slightly hazy with lust. He wasn't sure if he was just narcissistic or it was the thought that Loki had just been sucking him.

"I want to have you." Oh god, those words whispered in that delightful voice nearly were his undoing. Leaning over to the bedside table he fished the bottle of lube out of the drawer with trembling hands. Loki really affected him and somehow Tony felt no fear for it. He pulled the taller man back in for a kiss, letting his tongue explore that warm cavern. He felt those long pale fingers trail across his stomach and thighs.

"I think we have had enough foreplay." He muttered, because seriously if Loki didn't do something soon he was going to explode. The god gave him a quick grin before slicking up two fingers. Tony didn't care how much noise he made when the first finger slipped inside of him. The combination of pain and pleasure was just too damn good. He felt a hesitation in Loki, as if he wasn't sure anymore of what he was doing.

"How often have you done this?" He asked the god. The man pulled away his fingers.

"I've never been the one to penetrate and very rarely was there any preparation." Well that got him down from his high enough. While this was about the both of them, this mostly was a very big step for Loki. He needed to know that this was alright.

"Just do what you did a second ago, I'll tell you what to do, right now you have done everything right." Tony smiled at him and pressed a soft kiss to the man's lips. He groaned when the finger slipped back in and started to move around a little. "Now…ah…add another one and...ugh…move them away from each other."

Tony always knew Loki was a quick study and he really thanked the heavens for it now. He hardly needed to give any other instructions and the man had found his prostate within seconds. It was very, very obvious Loki was enjoying having him beneath him making the most wanton sounds. Well, Tony would this kind of torture every day if Loki liked it. bucking his hips as a third finger was added, he let out a low moan. He really would not be able to hold out for much longer.

"Loki, please…." He whined. Well the god was certainly the first one to make him do that in the bedroom. Brown eyes caught green as they finally joined together. He reached up to touch that beautiful pale cheek that was covered in a slight sheen of sweat. "So beautiful…" he whispered as Loki leaned into the touch. He didn't let their eyes break contact as Loki once again started to move and he wrapped his legs around Loki's hips to draw him in even closer.

"So beautiful….fuck that feels good…god, I love you…more…please…please…please." He was hardly aware of what he was saying but it wasn't like he really cared either way. When Loki finally placed his hand on his member he came with the god's name on his lips.

"Tony!" Loki cried out as he followed him after a few more trusts. It took them a few seconds to catch their breath, but once they did Loki quickly cleaned them up with a bit of magic.

"You know, I really like that trick." He mumbled as he pulled the god against him. The muscles were still trembling with exhaustion and he lazily stroked the man his back.

"Really, that was the part you liked about all this?" Loki questioned as he placed a hand on the arc reactor.

"No the other thing was pretty great too, but this just saves clean up time."

"Pretty great? I should hope I did a better job than that." Loki looked up at him with a smirk, but the obvious question was there. Did you enjoy it just as much?

"Okay fine, it was extremely fantastic." He teased as he pressed a kiss to the man his forehead.

"Don't tease me Stark." The god bit back.

"Loki, I'm not lying. I don't think I've ever begged for anyone, which is private information by the way so no need to flaunt it." He really liked the way the god seemed so entirely boneless against him.

"Yes, you did seem rather needy…" Loki smirked and Tony felt entirely justified to hit him with a pillow. Which he immediately regretted as the god did some hand movement that immediately had him squirming. It felt like he was being tickled everywhere. He could not stop the laughter escaping him, while he tried to stop the sensation.

"Okay….Okay…I give up…I need you…." The tickling sensation did not stop, if anything it got worse. He was trying to stop from laughing so he could actually catch his breath. "I desperately need you!" He exclaimed as he felt all his muscles spasm at the tickling.

"Don't you forget it." Loki told him as he once again laid down next to him, while he was still trying to catch his breath. Looking into those mischievous eyes he realized he truly did.

"I love you, you know." He pressed a kiss on the top of the man his head. He still found it rather funny that it was always Loki who curled up against him even though he was the taller one.

"I love you too…" he felt warm lips against the skin next to his arc reactor. "Now can we please get some sleep."

Loki was woken up to the sound of those blasted Christmas songs that were being constantly repeated on the radio. It wasn't that he really hated them because they were bad, but because they were catchy. His son seemed to be terribly amused whenever he was caught humming "Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer" and Tony found it even funnier. It had taken Loki far too long to realized that Stark's favorite nickname for him actually came from that song. Now however, after nearly a week of silence and depression he actually didn't mind the happy songs.

Stark still seemed to be fast asleep and Loki got out of the bed with no problems. A quick shower was what he needed right now. The hot water felt good against his skin, relaxing the slightly sore muscles. Humming a Christmas ditty he quickly dried off and went in search for some sustenance. He found his son on the way to the kitchen, having a serious conversation with Jarvis.

"What's troubling you?" he questioned as he pulled out some coco puffs, those things were really addictive.

"I'm trying to figure out what to make for Tony." His son replied as he crossed off something on the list in his hand.

"Why would you make something for him? Did he ask you to design another building?"

"No, it's a Christmas tradition to exchange gifts with the people you celebrate it with. You can give them anything you think they will like. According to Jarvis Tony has already ordered gifts for us. Now I'm trying to figure out what I could do for him…" he seemed to ponder on his list for a second. " Would number seventeen be possible Jarvis?"

"Not with the limited amount of time, young sir." The computer replied.

"So we all exchange gifts?" Loki asked, his hunger forgotten.

"Don't worry dad, I don't think Tony really wants us to go through the trouble. I just thought it would be fun. You don't have to do it if you don't want to….Jarvis what about number six?" His son kept up his conversation with the AI as he left the kitchen.

Oh, in the nine, this was bad. Loki had not been aware of such a tradition and now a certain dread filled him. What if Tony did want a present? What if he couldn't find the right one? He didn't want to use Stark's own money to buy a gift and he was hardly that creative with technology as his son was. What on earth should he get the man who already had everything?

'I don't want a lot for Christmas  
There is just one thing I need  
I don't care about the presents  
Underneath the Christmas tree  
I just want you for my own  
More than you could ever know  
Make my wish come true...  
All I want for Christmas is  
You... yea yea'

Oh for Odin's sake, could no one turn off that blasted radio. Loki needed to think.


	37. Chocolate

Only three days left and Loki was positively panicking. He had tried every channel he knew of to figure out what Tony wanted and none of them knew. Well it sounded impressive but really he had just asked Fenrir and Jarvis and hadn't gotten anything conclusive. Fenrir had just smirked and told him he was an idiot and Jarvis hadn't said anything, he just played All I want for Christmas. He hated them and the tune had gotten stuck in his head.

"All I want for Christmas…Oh for the love of…" Loki cursed as he caught himself singing to the tune once again. He threw the book he had been trying to read down on the couch. He couldn't really focus anyway. The twinkling lights of the tree seemed to mock him. Telling him exactly how much time he had to find the right gift. Stark had done so much for him and he could not find a single thing that would be a good enough gift for him. The man had everything on Midgard he could ever want….everything on Midgard….but not Asgard.

"Why are you glaring at the tree? You do know it doesn't actually burst into flames when you do that, right?" Loki nearly fell of the couch in his haste to turn around.

"How did you even know I was glaring, you can't even see my face from that angle." He huffed as Tony laughed him. In answer he pointed at the windows that had gotten reflective as the night had fallen.

"Something bothering you?" The man asked as he placed himself on the other place on the cough.

"Yes, there was something that bothered me, but I think I've found a solution. I wasn't glaring at the tree however." He had been actually, but Stark didn't need to know that. "I was merely wondering what you got me as I did notice the package underneath it with my name on it…"

"Yes, well you will need to keep wondering because I'm not telling you."

"Oh really, there is nothing I can do to persuade you..?" He gave the man a seductive look as he leaned in very close to his ear.

"I know that look…" Tony's breath had sped up a little. "but this is a public space and I doubt.." He hissed as Loki let one hand trail a little lower than was appropriate. "I doubt that Fenrir would be happy walking in on….whatever you are planning." While his words were dismissing him, Tony did absolutely nothing to push him away.

"Well you know what to do to make me stop then…." He pressed a kiss to the pulse point in Stark's neck, while moving to straddle him. Who ever said Loki didn't use all his gifts to persuade people was clearly wrong.

"I'm not telling Loki, it's no fun and I think you are the one with the bigger problem when your son walks in." Another hiss as Loki wriggled around a bit on his lap.

"Are you very certain Stark…I'll make it worth your while." He knew what he was doing was beyond evil, but he would be hard pressed to say he wasn't enjoying himself.

"Loki….you're not playing fair." Loki bit down on a sweet spot on Tony's neck before kissing it softly.

"Who says I'm playing?" He laughed as the other man moaned, a sound gladly swallowed by his own lips. While he was actually rather curious as to what Stark had bought for him, he was also getting rather turned on himself. He had never thought he would ever seek out physical contact again, but after their last 'session' he had lost the need to hide himself from the smaller man. He could almost say a hunger for the soft touches had arisen. He wasn't quite there yet to let the man take him, but he was sure he would get there someday. Their relationship, as slightly twisted as it was, was going at a steady pace now.

"I think it's better if we take this to the bedroom." Tony muttered when Jarvis alerted them that Fenrir had left the library. Loki crawled of the man's lap pulling him up with him by his tie. "I want to get something first, so you just go ahead." What on earth could the man want to get first? Deciding to trust him Loki left for the bedroom. The bed was already perfectly made by Jarvis and they would certainly have fun messing it up again.

He felt the soft stubble against his neck as Tony pressed a kiss in it. He leaned backwards letting his head fall onto the shorter man's shoulder as two arms wrapped around his waist. He might be known for his smart mouth, but Stark certainly knew how to use his. "What did you have to get?" He chuckled when he realized the man was holding a bottle of chocolate sauce. "Jarvis is going to kill you for ruining the sheets."

"Well, I will die a happy man then." Clothes were quickly discarded as they made their way to the bed, crashing down on the silk sheets. He was surprised when Tony flipped him on his back, hovering over him. "Can I…will you trust me?" He wasn't sure what the shorter man had in mind, but he would trust him with this. He hadn't done anything wrong yet. "Is there a spell to warm this up little, because I'm pretty sure it will feel cold…well maybe not to you but…" deciding to shut him up he pulled him in for a rough kiss as he grabbed the bottle with his free hand. With a silent spell the chocolate was warmed up enough to feel pleasant and flow nicely.

He wasn't sure what to expect exactly, but the feeling of the warm liquid hitting his chest and nipples was a whole new experience. He placed his hands into Tony's hair as the man started to lick him clean again, nipping softly in a few places. It felt like he had died and gone to Valhalla. He snorted with laughter when Tony wrote Property of Stark as well as he could with the chocolate. The attention felt wonderful as the man was quite literally worshipping his body. He did feel like h should reciprocate in a way, but the moment he tried to do anything to the man he got a slap on the wrist for his troubles.

He groaned and threw his head back as the man took him into his mouth. Really it was just sinful and for a moment he saw stars as Stark did a move with his tongue while simultaneously giving a hard suck. Really, why couldn't he always feel this good?

His eyes shot open however when he felt a finger at his entrance, softly rimming it. "Tony, what are you….I can't…." He wasn't ready for Stark just yet.

"I don't plan to do anything else Loki, but maybe you should try and get used to having something back there….small steps I mean." It was ridiculous that the man would blush while saying that, but was able to shamelessly take him in his mouth without a single hesitation.

"Nothing else?" He could see the logic in Stark's plan, but he still felt a little insecure about it. He should start and make some sort of progress with this. The rest of the things had gone well enough and he did want to see if he could go further.

"Not, unless you want to." Tony assured him. He gave Loki a big smile and then set his mouth back to work, which had the god soon enough distracted. He felt the hand once again slide lower and he tried to relax his muscles, which was made easier by the distracting things Tony's tongue was doing to him. There was no pressure at first, but after a while when he had relaxed a little there was a build-up of pressure and he groaned when the top of the finger slid in. To compensate Tony made him see stars again with that tongue and suck move. Despite the slight discomfort, he wasn't sure how long he would keep this up.

The pressure increased again and soon he could feel it move inside of him. The discomfort was slowly making way for pleasure, but the idea of something being there was still not sitting well with him. That was until Tony touched something that set of sparks behind his eyelids.

"Arrgh, again…pleaseeee." His last words stretched as the smaller man pressed at the same spot again, making him arch of the bed. By the nine he had known sex was pretty great, but this truly made words feel like they were worthless. It only took one more good suck and a press of that finger and he was set off like the fireworks Tony had shown him. As the man crawled back up to him he noticed Tony had probably pleasured himself as well as he was just as limp as Loki was.

"I…." He had no words, his tongue had turned to lead and to his everlasting horror his eyes started to get misty.

"Hey, shush…it's fine Loki…" he was pulled into the broad chest as he let the tears fall. It was difficult to explain why he was crying exactly. A certain relief that penetration, even in such a small form, could actually be pleasurable…the high of the orgasm crashing down…another step taken in his whole process of moving on…he was just glad Tony didn't ask for an explanation as he truly couldn't give one. All he could say was that they were, while it sounded very childish, happy tears.

"Do you think you might be able to do your cleaning up trick again?" Tony muttered once he had calmed down a little.

"Why, afraid Jarvis will not make you your coffee if you do not clean the sheets yourself?" He grinned, sometimes he truly loved the AI…even if he gave lousy Christmas gift ideas.

"No…I just think removing chocolate 'down there' is going to be rather tricky…but I suppose it's your own choice…" He did not…

"Are you saying you used chocolate…as a lubricant?"

"Well as you may have noticed I was rather busy at the moment to get the usual stuff…and it did work." He gave him a cheeky smile. Well that was true, it had worked.

"I do not think I will be able to ever look at a chocolate bottle the same way again." Loki groaned.

"Like you were able to do that after this anyway, even if I hadn't used it to do that." Remembering the licking and such he realized he would never be able to.

"That thing is going to be destroyed." He said, pointing at the half empty bottle at the bottom of the bed.

"Well I thought we might be able to keep it here….you know for further use…"

"You are incorrigible." Loki grumbled.

"You love me for it." Tony replied and the god felt no need to disagree with him as warm lips found his own again. They could keep the bottle in the room, for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN: I'm sorry for this scene, I really am! I wasn't actually planning to write something like this, but then a friend of mine made a comment of using food in the bedroom (totally as a joke about something else) and this kind of popped into my mind (can't say I minded the image, though it could have been better timed) and I figured I should give you a sex scene from Loki's point of view as I haven't really done that…so my apologies once again…


	38. Hapily ever after

"You have it then?" Loki asked as Thor appeared as quietly as he possibly could at Stark tower. He smiled when he saw the parcel that was wrapped up neatly. He finally had a gift for Tony and just in time as it was Christmas eve already. Tonight they would go and watch several Christmas movies, including the Grinch, which according to Tony was the best one.

"Of course I brought it brother…" Thor told him as he handed over the heavy gift. "I know you do not wish to speak to me, but could you please tell me if you can ever forgive me for what I've done?" He hated the puppy look on Thor's face. Everyone always thought he was immune to it, but even he sometimes caved.

"You disobeyed orders to get me when Tony was hurt and you just went and retrieved a valuable thing from Asgard for me. I do not hate you, but you sometimes make it very difficult for me to like you….it might just be this blasted Christmas cheer that just seems to be all around, but yes Thor, you're forgiven. Consider it my Christmas gift to you." He still wasn't that fond of his brother, but Tony had been giving him the puppy look every time the subject strayed even close to Thor and had been reminding him that it had been told with good intentions. He hadn't caved, this was just merely saving him the trouble of dealing with those looks for the next few weeks.

Thor lit up like the Christmas tree that was standing next to him and proceeded to pull Loki in a bone-crushing hug. He was sure he felt some of his ribs snap with the pressure the big oaf as putting on his chest.

"The man of Iron really has changed you, brother. I truly approve him and I hope your marriage will be a happy one." Thor boomed, clearly forgetting to lower his rather loud voice.

"What are you talking about Thor, Tony and I are not to be wedded." Loki hissed. Really what kind of strange ideas had the man concocted in his head.

"Not yet, but I know you and mother have been talking about making you a mortal. Tell me, is that not a true form of commitment?" Oh…he supposed that was true in a way.

"Listen Thor, and listen carefully. If you so much as breath a whisper of this to Stark, you will be losing every part of your body that isn't vital for living…and believe me you can lose a lot of body parts without dying." Loki hissed, the last thing he needed was Tony getting the wrong idea because the blond idiot was talking about marriage. Thor only laughed.

"You always were rather vicious, I'm glad not everything has change. I shall hold my tongue around Anthony, but you would do well to consider it brother. Make Anthony an honest man." Thor did the right thing of ducking when he did or he would certainly have lost his blond locks. Realizing his brother was already aiming for another hit, he made the wise choice of leaving the building as fast as he could.

Loki chuckled…making Tony an honest man, marriage was not capable of such a great feat.

The room looked warm and cozy with the fire in the middle burning and all the pillows on the couch. Especially for this occasion Tony had dragged down a couple of blankets to cover themselves with during their movie marathon. Outside the wind was howling and white snowflakes swirled through the air, making the warmth of the room even better. Dressed in comfortable sweat pants and a warm sweater Loki entered the kitchen to see if he could help Tony with anything. The man was standing at the stove looking at a pot where a strong smell of wine was wafting from. The popcorn was already popped and ready to go.

"Can I help you with anything?" He asked as he wrapped his arms around the smaller man his waist.

"No, I'm pretty much finished with this. Could you just put the popcorn in the living room." He asked as he leaned into the embrace. They had become a lot more comfortable with openly showing affection, which didn't always got a good response from Fenrir when he walked in on them kissing but it was often just a joke between them. His son was taking it remarkably well and he supposed the boy had latched onto Tony just as much as he had latched onto Loki. Grabbing the two large bowls of popcorn he made his way to the living room where his son had already made himself comfortable with Prancer on the couch.

Tony came in a few seconds later with three glasses of mulled wine which everyone took gratefully. Even though the room was toasty warm with the fire burning, there were still some cold fingertips that reveled in the warmth of the hot liquid.

"I propose a toast: To our first and awesome Christmas!" Tony said raising his glass and Loki clinked his own glass against it. 'and many more to come.' were the silent words added to the toast and everyone in the room knew it. The god settled himself against the other man's chest as Jarvis was ordered to put on the first film.

They started with 'A Christmas carol' which was met with great sceptisicme from Loki("Come on, Ghosts do not look like that!"), which amused Stark to no end. Fenrir often glared at him when he made derisive snort at the slightly more emotional scenes. It wasn't that he didn't like them, but the whole story was just so ridiculous.

It was followed by 'Love actually', which was rather entertaining. The compliments Loki gave the movie however (That prime minister looks good), were met with hard jabs from Tony and laughter from Fenrir at their antics. The plot was actually pretty good and while not everyone got their happy ending it certainly got you into the Christmas spirit…that was at least until that girl started to sing "all I want for Christmas"….he nearly muted the TV if it wasn't for Stark taking the remote away.

'Home Alone' however had all three of them in stitches, but Tony told him that under no circumstances was he allowed to try those tricks in real life. It didn't ruin his fun though. He knew a lot more tricks he could try. The boy however reminded him a little of himself when he was younger. Running around Asgard, playing pranks on anyone he could.

By the time the fourth movie came around they were all pretty quiet, not having the energy to kick up a fuss anymore. Loki was enraptured with the movie however. He watched with teary eyes as he watched the Grinch as a little child being bullied for being different. The seclusion, the wish to be as evil as everyone believed him to be. It all hit a little too close to home for Loki. As the ending credits rolled by he tried to blink away the tears that had gathered in his eyes.

"You okay?" Tony murmured.

"I'm fine, do we have any more wine?" he asked, trying to get the subject changed.

"Seriously, you laugh at a Christmas carol, but the Grinch gets you all teary eyed? I knew you were a big softie inside." The shorter man whispered. Loki noticed his son sleeping, curled up around Prancer.

"I'm not crying Stark." The god hissed at him, hoping to get off the subject.

"Well you were close to it at least…it's okay you know, it's a good movie." The genius rubbed his back a little and Loki slapped his hand away. He wasn't some sobbing woman in need of comfort for something as silly as this.

"It's not that, he just reminds me of me okay." He snapped, looking over to Fenrir who didn't seem to wake up.

"Well then, I suppose I'm Martha May? She's pretty hot, could be worse…or am I Cindy Lou Who…because in that case I think what we are doing is illegal."

"Are you mocking me Stark?" He eyed the man suspiciously.

"No, I'm just saying that you have reached the end of the story, the happy ever after stuff and all that. You have your son, a different life….you have me." He hadn't looked at it that way.

"I thought there was supposed to be a ring before the happy ever after part came." He smirked, Tony always knew how to get him to light up again.

"Since when do we ever follow the rules, but if you want one you can have it." Tony remarked shrugging his shoulders, but the wariness in his eyes betrayed him.

"Are you saying you want to marry me?" His eyes were probably comically large at the moment, but he didn't care. Had Thor been talking to Tony or something?

"Well I wasn't exactly planning a proposal or anything, but I guess that's what I said didn't I…I mean…I did say you can have one If you want it and…" The genius was babbling.

"Stark, if you think I would ever accept such a lousy proposal you have another thing coming." Loki huffed, but inside his heart was beating so fast it was probably humming. Tony narrowed his eyes at him.

"I'm sorry your highness, but I'm not exactly sure how you guys do this in Asgard."

"I'm pretty sure there is not one in all of the nine realms that has babbling as a proper way to propose." They were sitting a mile apart now staring each other down and for a moment he was reminded of the time Tony told him he loved him. He wasn't sure if he was hallucinating from lack of sleep, but this whole thing was preposterous. They were arguing over what the best way was for Tony to propose to him.

"Okay then, I'll show you 'the right way to propose'." Tony said, grabbing his hand and tugging him upright. His son had awoken as well and was looking sleepily at the two.

"What's going on?" His voice sounding off, like he was still halfway in dreamworld.

"I'm going to make your father say yes, come on." Tony told him as he dragged Loki to the stairs that led to the roof. Loki was really confused now. What on earth was Tony doing. The snow had slowed down to a soft snowfall and the city was alight with bright and colored lights. It wasn't what had captured Loki's attention though. The roof he had destroyed a couple of weeks ago had been transformed into something that could possibly resemble Valhalla. In the middle of the roof stood a large gazebo with in the center a big Christmas tree covered in all kinds of colored lights. The Gazebo itself also had strings of light covering it. the rest of the roof was covered in a thick blanket of snow which reflected the colorful lights.

"When in the nine did you find the time to do this?" Loki asked. He had been pretty sure it hadn't been there when Tony had ended up in the hospital and he certainly would have noticed it if he had left for the roof. They had not spend more than ten minutes apart since the accident.

"He asked me to do it….it's my design." Fenrir told him, making Loki look at his son.

"You knew!" How on earth had Tony and his boy been able to keep something this big from him. Not that they were terrible liars, but both were terrible at keeping secrets.

"So did Thor, he helped building it as Tony couldn't come help with his iron suit and I needed the help putting it all together." So that's why the brute had started about marriage earlier. His brother really had become a better liar, or maybe Loki was just getting sloppy. Tony dragged him over till he was standing in the Gazebo next to the large Christmas tree. He nearly stopped breathing when the man went down on one knee. He knew enough about Midgardian traditions to know what it meant. He blamed too much TV.

"I'm not going to give an entire speech on why I want to marry you, because to be honest I'm freezing my balls off here, but I will tell you this: I love you and I need you in my life for as long as it lasts and after that I want to keep arguing with you in the afterlife…so Loki will you marry me?" He actually had a ring! The man who was earlier babbling and saying he wasn't planning a proposal now was actually down on one knee with a ring in his hands asking Loki to say yes.

"Loki I seriously love you, but if you are not going to say yes soon I'm going to lose some….umph.." Tony was cut off as Loki dragged him up for a heated kiss.

"Merry Christmas, Tony." He whispered as he ignored Fenrir's catcalls.

Tony slipped the simple platina band on his finger. "All I want for Christmas is you…" Oh…oh!

"Is this the reason Jarvis has been playing that tune every time I asked him what you wanted?"

"Yeah, I told him he was being obvious but according to him you were to blind to notice…his words not mine." Tony hastily added as Loki looked at him murderously. "You happy now, Grinch?"

Loki smiled. "I am Martha May…"

"Okay, I'm guess I'm missing the joke here, but congratulations." Fenrir told them as he came up to the Gazebo, fatigue clearly visible.

"You need to go to bed or you are going to drop down in the snow soon." Loki told him.

"Yeah, it's a good thing I'll be asleep so fast…otherwise I might actually hear you guys 'going to bed'." He muttered, avoiding a mock smack from Tony. Loki only laughed. "Don't get out of bed too late you two, we still have to unwrap gifts!" Fenrir called over his shoulder as he went back inside.

"I already have my gift and I'm certainly planning to unwrap it." Tony whispered in his ear, sending a shiver down his spine.

"You can have me." Tony looked at him for a second to see if he was absolutely serious and then proceeded to kiss the living daylights out of him.

It was a quick walk back to their bedroom and an even faster undoing of their clothing. Once those were off though everything seemed to slow down again. Loki sighed with pleasure as Tony lavished his neck and chest with soft caresses and open mouthed kisses. There was absolutely no fear now, having Tony leaning over him and even if there was a sliver of it left it was soon erased by pleasure. He trusted the genius to take care of him and not to hurt him. He groaned as Tony grabbed his member and started to stroke it. Deciding to do more than just rake his nails over Stark's back he stroked the smaller man his stomach until he reached the genius his own leaking manhood.

"Please Tony, I want you in me…." Loki whispered as he arched up from a very well placed tug. He truly meant those words. He wanted to feel Tony in him. He had not even noticed the lube appearing but suddenly a slippery finger entered him. The muscles of his entrance clenched together at the unexpected intrusion, but soon relaxed again and it didn't take Tony long to enter a second one. Oh by Odin he had forgotten how good it could feel. The stretching sensation burned a little, but the soft coaxing words from Tony and his ministrations to his member made him soon forget about that.

"Tony…" He whined when he just kept stretching him, he wanted the man inside of him. Tony pulled out his fingers and placed a small pillow underneath his bottom and placed the tip of his cock against Loki's entrance. He could see the hesitation in Tony's eyes. "You will not hurt me Tony." He pulled the man down for a kiss as he felt the tip push itself past his sphincter. While the first few seconds felt a little unpleasant, he soon got used to the feeling of Tony inside of him.

He felt full and content, but he was certain that if Tony wasn't going to move soon he was going to hurt him. He wiggled his hips a little, which caused them both to moan at the resulting friction. Tony got the message though and started to move at a steady pace. Loki arched up as the man brushed his prostate.

"ugnn…TONY!" He yelled as the man his the spot again, only harder. The man captured his second scream in a kiss. Tony kept up a steady slow pace, but continued to hit that spot that made Loki see stars. It was slow and sensual and so good. He was sure he left a couple of nail marks in the back of the man's shoulders as he clenched down on them. Every time Tony pushed in his stomach brushed the tip of Loki's member, it just wasn't enough to throw him over the edge. Tony seemed to notice his distress because he gripped the cock in the hand he didn't need to support himself and gripped it at the base, giving it a few quick strokes while hitting the prostate simultaneously. He locked eyes with him as the extacy overtook him, he was barely aware that Tony soon followed him into the abyss of pure bliss. All he knew was brown eyes and pleasure.

Tony and Loki didn't appear until half past twelve in the afternoon, both dressed in casual clothing. They weren't planning to go anywhere else anyway, so sweatpants and a loose fitting shirt was perfectly acceptable for Tony. The stuff they had left on the table the day before had already cleared away though there was still a faint smell of mulled wine around the house.

"Finally, you two!" Tony knew he was joking, but still felt the need to stick up his middle finger the moment Loki wasn't looking. Fenrir had already fixed something that resembled breakfast for everyone and was seated near the tree, looking at the small pile of gifts underneath it.

"Patience is a virtue." Loki chastised him as he sat down on one of the pillows his son had put there. Snatching a few pieces of fruit. Tony only laughed at the rolling eyes Loki got in return. They spend a few minutes munching on the different types of fruit, until Fenrir handed each of them a gift with their name on it. Tony had also received a couple from the others on the team and surprisingly enough, so had Fenrir. The boy had an assortment of books from Bruce about biology, something Fenrir had taken an interest in when he found the literature in Tony's library. A sketchbook from Steve and he had gotten a few books with information about the nine realms from Freya and Thor.

Loki had received a gag gift from Tony a black and green tie with the Slytherin logo on it. Loki had found the Harry Potter books fairly quick and while he had not particularly loved them, they were fun to read according to him. So Tony was at least certain he had gotten the reference. He had also gotten a more serious gift.

"Stark, why this?" Loki asked him as he traced the gold letterings on the leather front saying it was Property of Loki.

"Frigga told us all those stories and how you always were working on your spells and I know you don't like to use modern technology for it, so now you can write it down." Tony himself preferred using the computer to save things, but he could understand that Loki preferred pen and paper for it, considering his upbringing. He himself was still looking with interest through the book he had gotten from Loki. It was all about magic and it's properties. He could get an enormous breakthrough in his research with this book.

As he looked around the room, with the tree twinkling merrily, wrapping paper tossed everywhere which was being torn apart by Prancer and Fenrir and Loki laughing about some sort of joke he didn't get he realized things couldn't get much better than that. He caught Loki's eye who smiled at him. His fiancé, he was getting married…he was getting his happily ever after.

They were getting their happily ever after.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I might add an epilogue when I have the time, but for now…this is the end people. The story is complete!


	39. I love you, Mr. Stark

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, it’s been a while. Well here is the epilogue as I promised (way, way back). I started university and that kind of sucked the life out of my writing unfortunately. I know the Stories Untold still needs a beta, as does this chapter. So anyone who would like to do it or has someone to recommend , feel free to leave a message! Also, the story has also been translated to both French and Spanish and I would like to thank the people who did that immensely!

**_The wedding:_ **

It was a rather subdued affair really for Tony’s standards. The team was there, Pepper and Rhodey and of course Frigga had been invited, but that was about it. They didn’t want to spend the day with people they did not care for and had to have fake pleasantries with. They kept it at the house in Malibu, on the beach, with Prancer to bring them the rings. It had been sweet, simple and amusing. Especially when the toasts came and Thor nearly broke down crying while telling them how much he loved them. Plus, Loki had looked absolutely mouthwateringly gorgeous.

“Hey…I was wondering where you had snuck off to.” Tony murmured as he wrapped his arms around his husband.

“I simply needed some fresh air.” Loki replied, leaning into his hold as they both looked at the sun slowly sinking into the sea.

“You’re not already regretting marrying me, are you?” He teased, twirling the platinum band on Loki’s finger. One he never planned to have him take off.

“Well….I am wondering if I couldn’t have done better.” Tony poked him in the side for that comment. “You could never do any better than me, I’m the only one who will put up with your atrocious cooking and those books you leave lying all around our house.” He moved away a little so Loki could turn around.

“That’s probably true.” The man smirked down at him before he leaned down to kiss him. “I love you, Mr. Stark.”

“I love you too, Mr. Stark.”

**_Their first fight:_ **

“Turn that music down Stark!”

“Just go read somewhere else!”

“This is my house too!”

“Well it still has my name on the building!”

“I am also a Stark now, remember!”

“Yes, and I am starting to regret that!”

“Take that back!”

“No! You are being a pain in the ass!…..are you crying?”

“No…I’m not.”

“Yes, you are….come on Loki, I don’t mean it…it’s nothing to get so upset about..”

“I am not upset… “

“Well, you don’t look like you’re fine.”

“I’m not upset! I’m pregnant!”

“….”

**_The birth:_ **

Tony hadn’t been allowed to be in the room with Loki and it was killing him. He had been there at every point of the pregnancy as the god got bigger and more agitated, but now he couldn’t go in. The amount of magic used to facilitate the birth would mess with the arc reactor and no one wanted complications at a time like this. Instead Tony was made to wait outside with the rest of the team and Fenrir, while Thor and Frigga helped Loki deliver.

The rest of the team seemed to be doing just fine as the lounged on the couch and simply waited. They had come around to Loki in the past year and a half. Apparently anyone who could make Tony drink less, sleep more and actually be monogamous deserved their respect. Also, it was rather hard to take the god serious when he had waddled through Stark tower on a pair of black fluffy slippers.

“Why is it taking so long?” He snapped as he once again paced the twelve steps back to the other side of the room.

“There have been cases of people giving birth for nearly twelve hours even longer. You’ve only been here for three.” Natasha answered, flipping through a Cosmopolitan she had found lying around.

Tony huffed at the reply but didn’t say anything as he took the twelve steps again. From the right, to the left, to the right again. It went on for what seemed like millennia, but eventually Thor stepped out of the room. “You have a healthy baby girl.” He smiled.

A weight fell off Tony’s shoulders as he rushed into the room. Loki was already cleaned up and lying underneath the covers of the bed. He looked exhausted and in general completely wrecked, but his eyes were lit up as he stared at the bundle of joy in his arm. From Tony’s point of view it was just a bundle of pink blankets, but as he settled on the bed next to Loki he got the first sight of his baby girl.

He had never really thought about having children. It had never even occurred to him that Loki could carry his child as well…neither had Loki. She had been unplanned, but once the shock had finally worn off she had not been unwanted.

She was tiny and pale, with his nose and Loki’s eyes and a small tuft of dark hair on her head. She was  beautiful. “Emma Frigga Stark….welcome to the family.”

**Parent teacher meeting:**

“I’m sorry to say this, but your daughter has been causing a lot of trouble lately.” Tony hated the woman immediately. No one told him their daughter was a bad kid. She merely liked to do things her own way.

“What do you mean exactly?” his husband asked, placing a hand on Tony’s leg to keep him from lashing out at the woman.

“She refuses to answer the teachers when they call on her, when the math teacher told her to write down the explanation as to how she got the answer she told him ‘he would be too stupid to understand it anyway’.” ‘That’s my boy’ Tony thought, grinning smugly. Loki however seemed to have the same idea, and not in the positive way.

“I told you hundreds of times to stop insulting people with her in the room. She clearly is taking after you.”  The god snapped at him.

“ME? What about your  ‘I do what I want’ attitude? You are just as much to blame for this as I am.” The woman from Shields school for ‘gifted’ children coughed. ‘Really she probably has seen it all.’ Tony thought as he remembered all the other children that went to the school. Granted Emma was one of the older ones, but more and more avengers and other superheroes had started to pro-create, giving SHIELD new problems entirely. He still thought back in amusement at the time that his daughter and Brave, Clint and Natasha their son, had played tag in New York. They had played it with arrows and Emma had stolen Steve’s shield. There had been some ‘minor’ property damage and a long talk between his husband and daughter about using magic in public.

“Can we please get back on topic gentlemen?” Right his daughter’s terrible behavior. “We really request you talk to your daughter about showing respect to her elders. Aside from that Emma is a straight A student and seems to get along well socially.” Really, the woman was asking him and Loki to tell their daughter to show respect towards others? He supposed it was just her being able to say to Director Fury that she had at least told them. When he and Loki left the room they found their daughter playing with a small red headed boy. Brave was two years younger than Emma, but they were as thick as thieves. Clint and Natasha must be around somewhere as well then.

“Good or bad?” Ah there they were.

“Thanks to Tony’s irresponsible behavior we need to tell our daughter to show more respect towards his elders.” Loki told Natasha smugly. Of course it was Tony’s fault. If things didn’t go the right way for Loki you just blamed it on the husband.

“My behavior is perfectly fine, do you think you always referring to her uncle as a blundering fool is the right way to teach the kid?”

“That’s merely stating a fact. Everyone knows that Emma is already ten times smarter than Thor and can outwit him with her wit tied behind her back.” Well he had a point there. It was ridiculous to see how his ten year old daughter always managed to get Thor in the stupidest situations and walk away without any blame. He couldn’t be more proud.

“We better get inside, you guys mind watching Brave?” Clint asked as he ushered Natasha into the room for their parent-teacher conference. “No, not at all.” Loki answered before he could object. Ten minutes later they were both glued to the chair. 

“You just had to teach her how to glue things together magically.” Tony groaned as Loki tried to move his hands enough to cast the enchantments.

“Just shut up, Stark.”

**Meeting the boyfriend:**

“So…..you’re Bryan then?” Tony questioned, staring the boy down as they waited for Emma. He was almost satisfied to see the kid gulp.

“Yes, sir….you have a lovely daughter.” Tony scoffed. “She’s not lovely, she’s pure perfection.” Lovely did not even come close to describing their perfect girl.

“Yes…no…I mean, you’re absolutely right..” He could hear Fenrir snigger from the background. He was currently visiting for the weekend, as a break from traveling the world and clearly he was amused.

“So, what are your intentions with my daughter?” He asked, simply because he could. Emma was trained by Clint and Natasha and even if she didn’t manage to kick this wimps ass, Brave would do it for her.

“It’s just prom sir!” Bryan squeaked.

“Dad, stop pestering Bryan.” Tony turned around and almost wanted to send Emma straight back to her room to get changed. She had inherited Loki’s height, which was only amplified by the heels she was wearing. The backless black dress accentuated every curve she had as her black hair fell in curls over her shoulder.

“You look stunning..” he managed. “Don’t stay out too late!” He called after her, only to get the middle finger from her. He would get back at her for that….later.

**Now:**

Tony watched as his granddaughter danced with Steve’s grandson, her red hair glinting in the candles lit up everywhere. He had eventually caved about the apple. When Loki had confided in him that he would become mortal, just so he wouldn’t have to live without him Tony had refused to let him do it. He had also started to feel the aches and pains of age creep up on him and at that time Emma had still been rather young. He had not wanted to die before he could see her get married or simply her having to bury him at all. She was a demi-god and as such was just as immortal as Loki.

So here he was, celebrating his 200th birthday on earth. Steve was still alive, though slightly less kicking. Bruce was showing the signs of aging as well, despite the hulk keeping his DNA relatively young. Natasha and Clint had been buried a little over a hundred years ago, but their son Brave had lived on, marrying Emma once he finally got his head out of his arse to notice it.

It had taken a lot of begging from Emma to get an apple for him, but Frigga could never say no to her favorite grandchild. They had moved to a different realm eventually though. Simply because people from earth had gotten dangerous. Not in the sense that they could really harm him, but knowing Tony Stark had gained immortality had gotten the same effect as the super soldier serum had. Other people wanted it and they had once even tried to harm Emma and her children to get it.  It had also been a way for them to explore new places, see new things and build up a life somewhere where they wouldn’t be followed by press and simply could live life.  Earth was still the place they spent many summers though as Fenrir had taken over Stark industries and lived happily there with his own spouse and children.

He smiled when he caught sight of his husband and he dragged him with him out on the dance floor. “You seemed deep in thought.” Loki commented as they moved smoothly across the floor. “I was just thinking back on some of our more memorable days.” Tony smiled.  Loki smiled at him as well.  “You’re getting old.” He teased.  Tony shrugged with a laugh as they both knew Loki was still a few millennia ahead of him.

“I love you, Mr. Stark.”

“I love you too, Mr. Stark.”

  
  



End file.
